The Elysian Fields
by WyaRose
Summary: Syd goes on a mission sick and gets captured. Will Vaughn find a way to rescue her and if he does, what will be the aftermath of the tortue she endured?
1. Chapter 1

"Syd! You're gonna be late," Francie called as she pulled back the blinds in Sydney's room, filling the room with the bright 8 o'clock sun.

Sydney stirred in her bed and she shielded her eyes from the harsh light.

"Come on Sydney, up!" Francie said as she sat down on the bed next to Sydney.

With a hint of a rasp mixed in with the usual morning grogginess, Sydney sat herself up slightly. "Ugh. What time is it?"

"It's like, 8:15. Today's your presentation, isn't it?"

Sydney quickly became more alert. "Yeah, I was supposed to leave over an hour ago," she groaned as she remembered the call from Kendall alerting her to the 8:00 debrief taking place right now. Frustrated with herself, Sydney moved quickly to the edge of the bed and began to stand up when she was hit with a wave of dizziness. She gently lowered self back onto the edge of the bed as she closed her eyes and put her hand on her forehead.

Francie, who had been on her way out of Sydney's room, noticed her friends odd behavior. "What's wrong?" She asked as she walked over to Sydney.

Sydney removed her hand and looked up at Francie. "Oh, nothing. I'm fine," she replied. Adding a weak smile, she said, "Just got up a bit too quickly. I'm okay...really."

Francie studied Sydney, who she now realized looked quite pale, though her cheeks looked as though they had been pinched by an over-excited grandmother. Francie reached out and put her hand on Sydney's forehead, which was now facing the floor.

Syd swatted her hand away. "Francie, I'm fine!"

"Syd, you're burning up! How is that fine?"

"I just need some advil, Fran. I don't even feel sick."

"You could've fooled me."

Sydney looked up at her friend with a small smile, knowing Francie was only worried. "I have to get to work. See you tonight, though, right?." Sydney added, recalling the plans they had made to have dinner at Francie's resturant.

"Uh-huh," Francie said unenthusiastically. As she exited Sydney's room she added, "I swear, Syd...That job is going to be the end of you."

Sydney looked after her friend and with a small llaugh to herself, mumbled, "You have no idea."

As Sydney entered the office, Marshall came running towards her. "Hey Syd!" He said cheerily, taking large steps to keep up with Sydney's quick strides.

Sydney smiled brightly in return. "Hey Marshall."

"In case you were were wondering, which I'm sure you were because...Well the meeting...you know the debrief," Syd nodded in acknowledgement, "Well because you weren't hear, I mean you were late...Why were you late, by the way? Anyway, the meeting's going to start in 5 minutes." He added quickly, "in the debrief room...obviously."

"Thanks," Sydney replied.

Still rushing to keep up with her, and just slightly out of breath, Marshall continued the conversation. "Syd, you...you okay?" He responded quickly to the confused look on her face. "I just mean you look a little...Well, just, you don't seem as...energetic as you usually do."

Sydney smiled down at Marshall who was still struggling to stay by her side. "I'm fine, thanks," she said as Marshall stopped walking and smiled back. She called over her back, "See you in the debreif room."

"Right, the...defrief room," Marshall said more to himself as he caught his breath.

Sydney was definitely off her game, and the fact that Marshall had noticed it had bothered her, though she would never have let it shown. Her head was throbbing and her stomache gurggled as if threatening to empty of her quick breakfast. Her body was sore and her throat was on fire. Releasing her skin was noticably paler, Sydney had started the morning by pilling on ounces of makeup. Nevertheless, Sydney refused to believe she was sick. Because of her demanding job, Sydney took great care of her body and rarely got sick. When she did, however, he entire body crashed. With a slightly disillusioned mindset, Sydney had conviced herself that if she ignored her pain it would eventually go away. After stopping at her desk for a minute, Sydney headed to the debrief room. As she saw Vaughn headed in the same direction, she quickly ran into the bathroom.

Vaughn, Sydney had come to realize, could read her like a book. She usually loved the fact that he could always tell what she was feeling, but she was still convincing herself she wasn't sick, and knew if Vaughn commented it would make her more vulnerable. Stressing over how to avoid Vaughn was not something Sydney usually did, and it was upsetting her.

As Sydney stood and stared at herself in the mirror, she felt the contents of her stomache making their way up her throat, burning her esophagus. Turning abruptly and lowering herself to the tiolet bowl, Sydney watched as her milk and energy bar poured into the tiolet. Convinced she had just worked herself up, Sydney wiped her mouth with tiolet paper, flushed, popped a piece of gum in to her mouth, and looked in the mirror to confirm she looked acceptable. She was still a little shaky, but Sydney hid it easily by stuffing her hands into her pockets. Satisfied, Sydney walked out and into the debrief room.

Vaugh, however, still waiting for Kendall to come, had been waiting at the door for Sydney's arrival. As she approached, he could tell something about her was off. She was wearing way more makeup then usual, and her normally perfectly straightened back was slightly hunched. Plus, the usual spark that normally glistened in her eyes wasn't there. When Syd was in front of him, he could hear a slight rasp in her voice, though her delivery was unfaultered. "Hey!" She said brightly, a dimpled smile forming, just for him.

"Hey," he said as he smiled back. As he reached in to kiss her, she abrubtly moved her head to the side and pressed her lips on his left cheek. Smiling, they pulled apart and took their seats.

"You okay, Syd?" He asked in a slightly hushed tone.

"Great," Syd replied with a smile as gorgeous as the last.

Vaugh placed his hand on her wrist and returned hers with a warm smile. Sydney, still smiled, turned to look at her father. "Morning," he said to her, with a head nod. Sydney smiled back. She figured conserving her voice would be a good idea if she was being sent on a mission. As the 2 agents facing the entrance straightened their backs, Kendall entered the room.

"Sydney, where were you?" Kendall demanded as he made his way to the head of the table.

"Sorry, I just got a late..."

"Don't let it happen again," interrupting Sydney before she could explain herself. "We have just recieved intel on a rising threat known as the Elysian. We believe they are responsible for last weeks system collapse," Kendall said, referring to the panic that arose last week when all the serves crashed for a good 25 minutes. "We have reason to believe they are interested in getting Rambaldi's 'Passanger."'" A/N: Elysian is prn Eh-lee-shun

Jack, who had been characteristically silent, intetupted Kendall. "And what exactly is a Passenger?"

"More like, THE Passenger. There have been rumors circulating through-out the Rambaldi-driven world for centuries centered around what, or who, the Passanger is. As far as we know, the Passenger is a person who can become a direct conduit to Rambaldi. In this altered state, it is believed that Rambaldi will be able to channel a message to whomever the Passenger may be. The Elysian believes they have figured out who the Passenger is. Sydney," Kendall started, causing a starled Sydney to look up from trying to subtly warm her cold hands. "You and Vaughn will travel to Turkey, where we believe the Elysian to be set up. As we have understood, they keep all their documents in a safe in Hotel Ornek, located in Ankara. You will break in to the safe, take pictures of the documents needed, and return home. Marshall," Kendall nods to Marshall, he stands up and smiles as he looks around the room.

"Okay, so how's everyone?" As he scanned the room and saw no response, he quickly launched in to his desctiption. "So every girl likes a nice piece of jewerly. You know," he said chuckling to himself, "a little, BLING BLING to go with their new dress." As he stumbled nervously through his words, he looks at Kendall who nodded disapprovingly, signaling Marshall to continue. "Well, this here," he said, reaching behind him in to his suitcase and pulling out a velvet box. Opening it, he revealed a beautiful sparkling diamond on a thin chain. As he took it out and held it up, he said "this hear...is a 100 real diamond neckalce. And that little dot right there in the core, well that is a little itty bitty camera. So basically, if you would," he said reaching over to hand it to Sydney, but realizing Kendall doesn't like him involving the team members, quickly drew back and continued, "well, you would put it on, when it's time that is, and click this little button...here," he says as he pulls a small button on the clasp of the necklace, "and VWA LA!" He said as a picture of Sydney and Vaughn looking quite amused appeared on the television screen behind them, "for your viewing pleasure." He smiled and laughed quietly and nervously looking around the room for some sign of approval.

Kendall, after nodding in approval at Marshall, stood up and looked at Sydney and Vaughn. "You leave in an hour."

As Sydney walked down the stairs of the plane, she had to grab the side railing to steady herself. Sydney, despite her efforts, was not feeling any better, and having just spent 20 hours on a place, felt even more disoriented by the altitude change. Vaughn had actually been great, not telling her she couldn't carry out the mission but comforting her. Plus, she had gotten a lot of sleep. However, something about Vaughn tending to Sydney always made her feel weak, which never put her in a good mood.

After about 5 hours in the air, Sydney felt as though she was going to pass out. The altitude was not helping at all, and she could feel Vaughn's piecingly green eyes on her the whole time. Finally looking up from the book she was pretending to read, she smiled at Vaughn. "You okay?" She asked, leaning forward.

"I think I should be asking you," Vaugh replied.

"Vaughn, I told you, I'm fine. I just...had a headache before, that's all," she said as she smiled reassuringly. Vaughn new better, though.

"Syd, honestly, you don't look good."

"Well that's just what every girl wants to hear," she replied teasingly, trying to keep her perfect smile plastered to her face.

Vaughn didn't seem amused. He leaned forward as Sydney had so there knees were touching. He took her hands and held them on his lap. My g-d are they cold, Vaughn thought, as he tried to warm them up with his own.

"Sydney, you're clearly sick, and I KNOW you said you were fine," Vaughn quickly added before Sydney could protest, "but I think we both know that you aren't one to put their personal needs before their job." Sydney, who had been looking down at her hands, now entangled in Vaughn's warm, strong ones, looked in to Vaughn's eyes and smiled weakly. Keeping her hands in his, Vaughn stood up and sat down in the seat next to Sydney. Letting go with of one of her hands, he gently pulled Sydney's shoulder so her head was resting on Vaughn's shoulder. Sydney let out a quavering sigh as she let Vaughn's warm embrace wash over her. "Well it's too late to sit this mission out now," Sydney said, in a quiet, weak and unforced voice very much unlike the one she had been using all day. Vaughn used the hand that wasn't wrapped around Sydney to grab a blanket from under the seat and spread it over her.

"No it's not. They could send Weiss up here in a second."

Realizing this was the wrong thing to say as he felt Sydney tense up in his arms, he added, "Just incase you really are sick." Sydney looked up at the beautiful man holding her and saw a slight twinkle in his eye. "You know," Vaughn said gently, "You don't always have to be strong."

Sydney just smiled. "I just need some sleep. I'm going to complete this mission. When we get back I'll take a day off," Sydney responded as she closed her eyes and snuggled closer to Vaughns strong body. Vaughn, who knew arguing at this point was pointless he had learned a while back that when Sydney made up her mind, nothing ever changed it and wanted to let her sleep, kissed the top of her head and stroked her hair. When Vaughn was sure Sydney was sleeping, he gently slid the back of his palm on to her forehead. In addition to Sydney's burning forehead, Vaughn felt small beads of sweat forming. Gently lowering her down on his seat, he walked to the bathroom to wet a cloth with cold water. As he lifted her back in to his arms, Sydney stirred slightly. Vaughn dotted her forehead and neck with the cold cloth and watched her as she slept soundly in his arms.

At hour 16, Sydney, still sleeping on Vaughn's lap, began thrashing. Vaughn, who had been gazing out the window, grabbed Sydney's outer arm with one hand and her waist with is other, pulling her gently on to his lap. Lying her head on his chest, Vaughn rocked Sydney until she returned to a peaceful slumber. With Sydney now in his arms, Vaughn rested his head on hers and fell into a light sleep.

As Vaughn came off the plane, he saw Sydney resting against the railing. Walking down next to her, he put his arm gently under hers.

Sydney looked up at Vaughn and smiled. "I think I rushed off a bit too quickly." Sydney could tell Vaughn wasn't satisfied with her excuse, but decided that as long as he went along with it, she wouldn't bother trying to think of something else.

To Sydney's delight, all Vaughn did was take Sydney's duffel and put his arm around her waist. When Vaughn saw her bright smile, he placed a soft kiss on Sydney's temple.

That was the great thing about Vaughn, Sydney thought. Somehow, he always finds a way to put a smile on my face.

After checking in to the hotel as "Mr. and Mrs. Fately," Sydney had taken two more medicine pills and was putting the finishing touches on her disguise when Vaughn walked in.

"Why, Mrs. Delia Fately, don't you know how to stop a guy in his tracks," Vaughn said with a smile as a walked to Sydney and put his arms around her waist pulling her in close to him. Vaughn could feel Sydney shaking slightly, but he knew it was no use. After Sydney and him at arrived at the hotel, Vaughn had tried again to get her to stay in the video room and let him retrieve the data.

Sydney had responded with a smile. "Now I know I've always said you look good in anything, but I really don't think a black silk gown and a diamond necklace is your style."

Vaughn noted now, however, that it unsuprisingly was perfect for Sydney. Pulling back from Sydney, he held her at arms distance so he could take in her beauty. The black silk clung to Sydney in all the right places, enunciating her breasts and the gentle curve of her tiny waist into her soft hips. She had left her hair down and thin strands were falling over her face, directing the focus on her full, lush lips.

"You like?" Sydney said, teasing him with a twirl.

"I don't know...Black's never really been my color," Vaughn said as he tried to hold back a smile.

He twirled her around and dipped her, kissing her like they were back in Credit Dauphine and had just taken down SD-6. As he pulled her up, she giggled and hugged him tightly, before saying, "Would you do the honors?" She smiled and turned around, lifting up her hair so he could activate the video camera. Wishing her luck, Vaughn watched Sydney, or Delia, make her way out of the room.

Having memorized the floor plan of the hotel, Sydney headed to the ballroom needing no direction. As Sydney showed the guards her ID, they opened the large, wooden doors, revealing a beautiful, deep blue ballroom filled with hundreds of women and men dancing to the gentle music playing in the background. As planned, Sydney tripped on the guards shoe. Falling heavily to the ground, Sydney stayed face down until she felt the guard lower himself. "My apologies madam," the guard said with a heavy Turkish accent as he reached down to help her up. Putting her arms on his hip to help her stand up, Sydney gently snatched the door key he had in his pocket. "It's quite all right," she said smiling as she brushed herself off. "Enjoy the party, madam," the guard responded.

Once in the ballroom, Sydney rushed off in the direction of the bathroom. Reaching the door labeled, Odain Hanymefendi Ladies Room, Sydney looked around before heading further down the hall. Pressing into her ear piece, Sydney said in a hushed voice, "Bluebird to Phoenix. I'm heading into the safe-room."

"So I see," Vaughn said, amused by the fact that he could see everything Sydney was doing.

"I found it," Sydney said as she reached the door without a label. She swipped the key and went and pushed gently against the door, again looking around to make sure she wasn't being followed. Walking in and looking around, Sydney pressed in her earpiece again. "Vaughn, are you seeing this?" Sydney asked in a whisper.

Vaughn, examining the room through the screen, responded quickly. "I guess the Elysian isn't as big a threat as we expected."

While Sydney agreed, something seemed off to her. Not only had there been no security whatsoever guarding the room, but the room itself was pathetic. In fact, Sydney was quite sure by the amount of trash and boxes that it was where the hotel stored their trash until they knew how to dispose of it. Easily finding the only safe in the room, Sydney began to make her way over.

"Something doesn't seem right, Vaughn," Sydney said before she made it to the safe. But before Sydney could respond, Vaughn got his answer.

A large man had jumped out from somewhere not visable to Sydney. Holding a gun pointed in her direction, the man said, "Hands up." As Sydney did so, the man walked closer. "Now on your head...Good...Now on the ground."

Vaughn, who due to the mans size and the position of the camera on Sydney's neck, could not see the mans face. Watching the camera tilt to the ground, Vaughn got ready to leave the room. Just as he was heading out, he saw the man drop to the ground.

As the man stood hovering over, Sydney grabbed his ankle and threw him over. Standing up quickly, Sydney got an intense head rush. Seeing nothing but black and yellow lights in front of her, she suddenly felt a blow to the stomahce that knocked the air out of her. Kicking her back, Sydney slammed into a bunch of boxes.

"So you're the great Sydney Bristow," the man said with a smirk. With that, he walked up to Sydney who was breathing heavily and staring up at the man. "I have to tell you, I'm very dissaa...Ahhh!" The man screamed as Sydney kicked him between the legs, as he doubled over, Sydney grabbed a piece of a metal pipe lying next to her and slammed it into the guys back.

"Thatta girl," Vaughn mumbled as a breathed a sigh of relief.

The man, who had dropped his gun, reached his hand out for it. Digging her 3-inch heels into his wrist, Sydney lifted her shoe and kicked the man in the face. Still, the man rolled forward and stood up, throwing a punch at Sydney. She blocked it with her palm and threw a punch at him, which he also blocked with his arm. Throwing another punch, Sydney managed to hit him right in the nose. She ran forward and grabbed the gun, shooting him 4 times before he fell to the floor.

Breathing heavily, Sydney leaned down, hands on her knees.

"Syd, you okay?" Vaughn asked with concern.

Shaking slightly, Sydney responded and made her way back to the safe. She pulled out the device Marshall had given her to figure out the code.

Still panting for breath, Sydney said to Vaughn, "Well, that was a much needed workout." Vaughn laughed in response. Before he could say anything, however, the camera began tipping upwards towards the ceiling.

"Syd? Syd, are you okay!" Getting no response, Vaughn yelled in to the microphone. "SYD!"

As Vaughn was getting up, he saw a man wearing a black mask enter the screen. Having seen more then enough, Vaughn ran out of the room, into the lobby, and to the ballroom. Pulling out his CIA badge to the guards, he ran to the back room Sydney had been in. Pulling the gun from his pocket, he shot at the door continuously before kicking it through.

"Syd? Syd!" Vaughn paced throughtout the small room, checking under everything, trying to find a door or a window that led out of the room. As he felt a lump in his throat forming, Vaughn faught back tears as he continued to call Sydney's name. As Vaughn saw something shimmering out of the corner of his eye, he felt the lump in his throat get bigger. He knelt down on the ground and picked up the thin, diamond necklace. Clenching it tightly in his fist, Vaughn stared at the glistening of the diamond, only met by those of the tears rolling down his cheeks.

iIn Greece, during the BC period, The Elysian Fields were believed to be the place in which hero's go after death. A special part of Hades, the place where all people go after death, being accepted to the Elysian Fields was considered a great honor./i


	2. Chapter 2

Vaughn felt a shiver run up his spine as the cold night air licked at his ears and nose. Too numb to move to the open window, Vaughn pulled his blanket so it covered his ears. Rolling onto his side, Vaughn stared as the clock ticked slowly. 3:15...3:15 and 49 seconds, 3:17, 3:18. There was no use in closing his eyes. He knew he wouldn't be able to fall asleep, and even if he did, he knew he wouldn't be without the viscous nightmares that torured him every night.

It had now been 18 days since she had gone missing in Ankara. Having searched the entire hotel and everywhere within a 10 mile radius of it himself, Vaughn had called in asking for backup. Kendall, who had taken his call, allowed Vaughn to run through the nights events before telling him to return home. When Vaughn refused, Kendall had reminded him he had no way and no resources to find Sydney without the CIA's help. Reluctant to leave but eager to find her, Vaughn boarded a plane that evening.

Since that night, nothing had been heard from Sydney. Jack, who was told of Sydney's dissappearance, let Will in on the situation so he could explain to Francie, who had been calling Jack persistantly since 11:00 PM, anxious to know why Sydney hadn't made their dinner-date. When Vaughn stomped down the stairs of the plane in a hurry, he looked up to see Jack waiting for him. Stopping for only a second, Vaughn quickly made his way to Sydney's father.

"Have you heard anything?" Vaughn asked directly.

"Not yet," Jack said, masking his fear with a harsh voice. "Michael, I need to know exactly what happened."

As Vaughn recalled the events once more, he felt the lump reforming in his throat. Going striaght to the agency, Vaughn and Jack were immeaditly called into a debrief where Sydney's abduction was announced.

"Now I know we are all very worried about Agent Bristow," Kendall said halfway through the briefing, not seeing Vaughn squint his eyes and clench his jaw in disbelief at the previous statement, "but we must keep in mind what is important right now."

"And what exactly is more important then bringing a captured agent home?" Jack interuppted quickly, knowing Vaughn's response would have been much less passive.

Kendall looked Jack directly in the eye. "Jack, we have 2 teams out on a wild goose chace trying to bring your daughter home. We have notified just about every country with ties to the CIA, and without. We are doing everything humanely possible to ensure Sydney's safe return. Until then, there are other things that require our attention."

Vaughn, who had been bitting his tounge to keep from shouting, felt a rush of blood enter his mouth, as he clamped down harder with his teeth to keep from killing Kendall right there.

What he didn't realize was Sydney was tasting the exact same thing.

Sydney had woken up once in the helicopter lifting her out of Ankara. Hardly concious, she had turned her head to take in her surroundings. She was in a heap on the floor, and it looked as though she had been thrown carelessly on to the ground. Her head throbbing so violently, Sydney could barely see anything. Looking up, she realized the man sitting next to her was the man who had knocked her out. Not that it had been a fair fight...He had snuck up from behind her, slamming her in the head with a metal rod before shooting her with what she knew was a tranqualizer. As she moved her head up slightly, trying to get a better view of his face, she realized she had absolutely no energy as her head fell back to the floor. Hearing a small noise, the man, who had been talking to the pilot, turned around to check on Sydney. Seeing she was awake, he moved closer to her, smiling before he slammed his fist into her perfect face, causing her to swarm in to darnkess again.

The next time Sydney woke, she was in a very small, grey cell. There was no bed and no windows, the only light coming from the crack of the door on the front wall. Still unable to move, Sydney took in her surroundings. The cell was absolutely freezing, made of cement, no doubt. She could hear a very faint murmur coming from outside, though she couldn't make out the words. As tormenting thoughts filled her mind, Sydney allowied herself to fall back into unconciousness.

That was the last time Sydney remebered waking up alone. From that point on, Sydney had awoke to two over-sized men grabbing her under her armpits rougly, and dragging her out of the room. The first time, having not eaten in days and still incredibly weak, Sydney almost welcomed the intrusion...Until she realized where she was headed, that is.

It had become a daily ritual, though sometimes Sydney thought she had been unconcious for a couple days and had been left until her concious mind could return. The ritual, while always torturous, was usually varied. The first time it had been a simple round of electroshock therapy, followed by a quick beating. The next time symbols and words had been engraved on her stomache and back by a small needle being stabbed into her and being dragged in through her skin. This continued day after day...Sydney had no idea how long she had been there for, though it felt over a year. The funny thing was, the man who tortured her never asked anything, never said anything. He just stood over her and did his thing. Whenever Sydney tried to talk, one of the large men would snap one of her fingers in half. After running out of fingers, he started making their way up her wrist, then her elbow. The man had completely destroyed her right arm before she stopped attempting to say something.

The torture, however, was nothing compared to the nights, though she had no way of knowing if it was actually night time or not. Turing that time, Sydney was left to stew in the darkness and feel as the tiny bugs ate at her wounds. Knowing after a couple days that swatting them away did nothing but drain her of the little energy she had, she allowed them to enjoy their meal. Still, this was nothing compared to what was going on in her mind. All she could see was him. How she ached for him, his touch, his lips. Sydney wanted nothing more then to be held in his strong arms and told everything was going to be okay. She didn't care if he would think she was weak...As long as he held her.

And she waited. Waited for him to come. Many a nights, after she was thrown back into her cell, Sydney knew she could have easily rolled over and died. The injuries after one day of torture would have been enough to kill anybody, but Sydney knew he was going to come...For her. So she waited. She kept on breathing, just for him.


	3. Chapter 3

Vaughn got out of bed when the clock reached 3:20. Putting on some pants and a shirt, Vaughn grabbed his keys and decented down the steps of his building. Running always made him feel better. He ran harder, faster, longer then ever before, imagining he was running to Sydney, to save her, to hold her.

Around 6:00, Vaughn headed home. Turning on the shower, he undressed and stepped in. On at the hottest setting possible, Vaughn didn't feel as the scorching water ripped into his body. He scrubbed at the raw, red skin on his body, trying to wash off the feeling of guilt and pain that had come back at full blast the moment he arrived home.

Vaughn was sick of this. Not enough was being done. Nothing was enough.

"Kendall, I'm going to get Sydney," Vaughn said as he rushed through the director's door. the secretary followef Vaughn in.

"I'm sorry, sir," she added timidly. "He just pushed by me," she added looking up disapprovingly at Vaughn.

"Kendall, I need to go get Sydney now." Vaughn repeated again, ignoring the small, annoying women standing beside him.

"Now, Agent Vaughn, I know we recieved intell regarding Agent Bristow this morning, but we don't know..."

Vaughn cut Kendall off. "Yes we do know. That intell came from a trusted, secure source. I don't see what the hesitation is here!" Vaughn cried incrediously.

Kendall got out of his chair and leaned forward, putting his hands on her desk and looking directly into Vaughn's perfect eyes. He spoke with a harsh, hushed tone. "Agent Vaughn, I understand you are distressed. We all are. But this information could easily be a set-up. We have recieved nothing from the Elysian, nothing regarding Sydney, nothing. And then we get some possible information and you want to run in, kicking and screaming?" It was more of a statement then it was a question...more of an accousation then a statement. Before Vaughn could edge in, Kendall continued. "What if this is a set up, Agent Vaughn? What if you walk straight in to a trap? How do you plan on rescuing Agent Bristow? And how exactly will that reflect on the agency? Sending a mourning agent out into the field half-cocked. This is not about you, and this is not about her. This is about the agency, Agent Vaughn. When the time is right, we will bring Sydney home, but not a moment before that. Do you understand?"

Vaughn, looking slightly defeated, but fuming with anger, turned sharply and exited the room.

Returning to his desk face down, Vaughn bumped in to someone walking as quickly as Vaughn. Looking up, he saw Jack staring down at him.

"I assume you heard the news on Sydney." Vaughn nodded in acknowledgment. "Have you talked to Kendall?"

Vaughn looked Jack in the eyes, answering his question without words.

"Come with me," Jack said as he headed off in the other direction.

Following Jack eagerly, Vaughn found himself in an isolated corridor. "Just how much of a risk are you willing to take for my daughter, Agent Vaughn?" Jack asked in a voice slightly above a whisper.

Again using his eyes to answer Jack's question, Vaughn added, "When do I leave?"

"Keep in mind, Agent Vaughn, there will be no backup, no contacting the CIA. If you're do this, you're in it alone."

In a somewhat aggitated and blunt voice, Vaughn restated, "When do I leave?"

How they got Sydney from Ankara to Moscow was a mystery to Vaughn, but not one he was eager to solve. All that mattered was he was almost there, which meant he was almost to Sydney. He knew she was there, too. Jack had clearly had his doubts, but Vaughn could feel it...She was their, waiting for him. And alive. He knew she was alive. He would know if she was dead.

Jack had arranged a private jet for Vaughn, who had told Kendall he was talking the day off. Probably thrilled to get him out of the office, Kendall, before giving him a lie detector test to make sure he wasn't planning on rushing to save Sydney, gave Vaughn the rest of the week off.

The intel that had come in earlier that morning was extremely detailed. Kendall had described the source he couldn't disclouse with the team as "reliable," so Vaughn had no doubt Sydney would be in that soup kitchen. As he told the driver who picked him up he needed to go to 9 Trekhprundy Pereulok in Russian, Vaughn went over the plan in his head. He had researched the area in Moscow where Sydney was being held, and found it was extremely isolated from the rest of the city. With a safehouse the only other thing within a 5-mile radius of the building, Jack had arranged through one of his secure acquaintances to reserve the safehouse for the week incase Sydney couldn't fly, though there would be no records of her stay to avoid any CIA suspiscion.

The car ride there was 2 hours. After driving through busy streets, the ground became bare and flat, the usually flourishing city looked completely dead. As they drove on, Vaughn saw the brown grass turn to sandy dirt and knew they must be getting close. Having kept his eyes glued to the horizon, he saw at a great distance a little house. Vaughn noted it's location as he moved his eyes to watch the road in front of him.

When they finally arrived at the medium-sized building, Vaughn stepped out of the car, thanking the driver. As soon as his body was out, Vaughn could feel Sydney's precense. She was close. He could tell.

Deciding to look around before entering the front door, Vaughn walked around the house. On the left side, he saw a small, almost unnoticable door hidden under the dry dirt. Turning the doorknob gently, the door opened and Vaughn stepped in. Looking around, Vaughn realized he had come in to the security room. Screens were everywhere, and Vaughn immeaditly recognized the road he had been dropped at. The guard, Vaughn could see, was sleeping in his chair. Vaughn quietly crept over, grabbed his gun, and though it took restraint to do so, moved his finger off the trigger and slashed him accross the head with the cold metal. Seeing the mans head drop, Vaughn quickly memorized all the rooms on the screen. None, however, had Sydney in them. Grazing his eyes again over the screens, Vaughn realized one room was completely dark. Either that or the camera was broken. Knowing that was unlikely, despite the lame excuse for security he had faced so far, Vaughn headed out the door.

Opening the door quickly and took a left. Having seen the rooms with guards at the doors, Vaughn made sure to stay in the white hallway. As he reached the end, the hallway branched off to the right or left. Feeling Sydney pulling him to her, Vaughn made the right turn and ran the rest of the way down.

As he faced the only door in the hallway, Vaughn breathed deeply, trying to steady himself. He was going to see Sydney...Going to save her. Trying to turn the doorknob but realizing it was locked, Vaughn grabbed his gun and, as if he was back in the hotel, shot at the door, kicking it down.

The shots had echoed down the halls and as Vaughn heard the footsteps slamming on the floor, he knew he had caught the guards attention. Looking before he entered the all white room, Vaughn hid behind a door so the oncoming guards couldn't see him. As they turned the corner, Vaughn shot them down one by one. Knowing there would be more coming, Vaughn rushed hurridely to the otherside of the room where there was another door, unlocked. Opening the door to see a completely different, dirty room and running through, Vaughn slammed into a massive guard, knocking him to the ground. The guard who had already sprung into motion kicked Vaughn in the stomache, then picked him up by his neck. Struggling for breath, Vaughn quickly reached into his pocket and fired. As he fell from the mans grasp, he saw another guard running towards him. Pulling the trigger of his gun, Vaughn realized he was out of bullets and sprung towards the man triple his size. Punching him in the face and the stomache before he had a chance to react, Vaughn wacked the man several times on the head with his gun as he fell to the floor. Catching his breath, Vaughn moved closer into the room, his heart pounding.

He saw two more door. Entering the first, he saw what looked to be a torture room, something Vaughn was all too familiar with. His heart sinking as he thought of all Sydney had been through, he backed out of the room. Before he closed he door, however, he saw another man peek his head out from around the corner. Wearing a white robe and gloves, Vaughn recognized him immeaditly as the torturer. Charging towards him, picking up a needle filled with some liquid on his way, Vaughn slammed the needle into the mans neck, who had the liquid injected in to him before he could even realize what was happening.

Satisfied he wouldn't be a problem, Vaughn left the room and stopped as he faced the other door. He inched forward and touched in lightly, stroking it once with the back of his hand. As he reached for the doorknob he realized his hands were shaking. Trying to steady himself, Vaughn grabbed the doorknob and tried to twist it. "FUCK!" Vaughn shouted, immeaditly regretting it incase Sydney had heard. Rushing around the room, he plowed through everything until he found a set of keys hidden underneath the desk panel. Returning to the door, he stuck the key in, and turned the knob slowly.

Sydney, always responding to gun shots, had come to as she heard the muffled noises from the outside grow louder.Shaking, Sydney tried to back herself up to the wall. The last round of torture had been the worst yet. They began by leaving Sydney to drown in a pool of her blood they had been collecting. After using CPR to clear her lungs, they slammed her head into brick so many times she threw up on the torturer. Trying to keep concious she didn't like to pass out in front of the man and show him he had power, though that was usually how it ended, Sydney managed to roll her eyeballs up to look at the man. Obviously displeased, he had used such force with the brick the next time, she blacked out. The next thing she remembered, she was being revived with cardiac defibrillation. Somehow feeling a world's amount of pain and numbness at the same time, Sydney thought, before blacking out once again, that dying was not an expierence she would care to relive.

The noise had stopped for a little while and she felt her body relax a little. As she was about to fall asleep, she heard someone yell as though they were at the door. Her first thought was, ofcourse, Vaughn, but she knew better at this point. Everytime Sydney had heard a sound at the door the past few weeks she had hoped it was Vaughn, breaking down the door to rescue her, but he still hadn't come. Sydney's near death or death experience had frightened her to her core. A wave of despair came over her as she realized Vaughn was never coming. She was alone. Totally alone. Except, ofcourse, for the person slowly opening the door to her cell.

As Vaughn felt the knob turn in his palm, he felt his heart in his throat. Opening the door slowly, to keep himself from leaping out of his skin as well as to keep from frightening her.

And there she was. She looked like she had lost 20 pounds, her eyes had deep circles around them, there was blood caked in her hair and all over her body, some fresh, some dry, she had cuts and bruises covering every inch of her, and yet Vaughn had never seen anything so beautiful. There she was. Right in front of him. Hunched against the wall, staring at him with her beautiful chocolatey eyes.

"Vaughn?" Sydney's voice was hardly a whisper, and her lips baredly moved, but Vaughn heard her like she was screaming in his ear.

He wanted to reach out, to touch her, to hold her, but he was glued to the spot. He had spent 19 days away from her, days that felt like months, and still he couldn't move to her.

"Vaughn?" Sydney asked again, in no stronger a voice. She felt like she was going to pass out. She couldn't tell if she was hallucinating or if he was really there. She needed to touch him, to feel him. But she couldn't move, couldn't even blink. She felt her eyes burn with tears as he stood their staring at her. She looked down, convinced he wasn't there. The real Vaughn would have her in his arms by now. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to shut out this cruel punishment, while at the same time, praying for the real Vaughn to return to her. She said his name, one last time, to herself. "Vaughn."

Vaughn felt he was loosing Sydney. Still feeling totally numb, he moved closer to her slowly. Still unsure of what was going on, Sydney used all her strength to pull her knees in to her chest. This is torture, she thought. They're using some form of torture on me.

When Vaughn saw Sydney curl away from him, he stopped walking. He bent down on his knees. She was a arms distance away. If he reached out his hand, he could touch her.

He moved a little closer to her, his breath uneven and shallow. "Sydney," he said, her name sounding more like a sigh then a word.

And she looked at him, right in his eyes. He was there. He was right there.

Seeing Sydney respond, he reached out and with a shaking hand, touched her cheek, fighting with all his might to hold back the tears burning in his eyes.

As Sydney felt Vaughn's hands, the hands she had dreamed about for the past weeks, she felt all her energy and strength return, as she let out a loud whimper, before bursting in to heavy sobs.

Vaughn moved closer and picked her up, placing her on his lap. He held her like a baby, resting her head against his chest, rocking her back and forth. As he kissed the top of her head over and over again, he felt the hot tears fall from his eyes and into her hair.

Still crying, Sydney looked up at Vaughn and whispered, "I waited. I knew you would come."

Vaughn kissed her forehead gently, not wanted to be the cause of any more of her pain.

"Ofcourse I came Sydney. I..." He had no idea what to say. No words could possibly express what he had felt not knowing where she was, what he felt now. The he realized there were words. "I love you Sydney."

She smiled. Vaughn had made her smile. Her smile only lasted a second as she began to sob some more, but for Vaughn, her smile had lasted a lifetime. He never realized it was possible to love a smile, to live for a smile, to work for a smile, but that was what he had done, what he was doing. He replayed her smile in his head, feeling warmer then he had in weeks.

Realizing his warmth, Vaughn quickly took notice to the freezing room they were in. Sydney was wearing a now extremely loose tank top and battered pants. Still shaking violently, despite her tears subsiding, Vaughn realized she could be going in to shocl. Vaughn took of his jacket, then his shirt, revealing his gorgeously tan stomache and perfect abs. First putting his shirt of her head, he waited as she weaved her left arm through. Seeing she didn't even attempt to put her right arm through, Vaughn gently lifted the shirt and looked at her arm. Her normally perfect, slender fingers were swollen and red, as was her wrist and her elbow. Feeling the tears return to his eyes as he very gently ran the back of his finger up her arm, he said quietly, "What did they do to you?"

Sydney, still shaking, smiled weakly.

"We have to get you to a hospital, Syd," he said coaxingly.

He pulled the shirt back down and placed his jacket over her shoulders.

"Can you stand?" He asked gently, truly wanting to carry her, but knowing she was still the same Sydney Bristow who went on missions when she was sick.

She nodded meekly, not sure if she really could or not. Having not used her legs since she arrived, as he slowly helped her up, she felt her legs crumble under her. Vaughn, supporting Sydney so she was hardly touching the ground at all, realized with a sickening stab to the heart that she couldn't support her own body. As her legs fell from under her, Vaughn grabbed Sydney around the waist and put all her body wieght on him. When Sydney winced at his touch, Vaughn, as gently as he could, scooped her up and help her lightly in his arms. 

He looked down at her as she rested her head on his upper chest. "You're okay now," he whispered. "I'm here."


	4. Chapter 4

As soon as he was sure they were safely out of reach from any of the left over guards, Vaughn sat down on the ground slowly, taking Sydney with him. He held her in his lap for a second before reaching into his right pocket and dialing Jack's number. As the phone rang, he re-examined Sydney, who was shaking in his arms. New wounds seemed to appear now that they were out of the dark, and he swore he could feel her body pulsing.

"Bristow," the quick, business-like voice announced as he answered the phone.

"Hi, it's Vaughn. I've got Sydney," he said, looking down at her.

He swore he heard a sigh of relief and a sniffle coming from the other line, but when Jack spoke again, his voice was as strong as ever. "Vaughn, listen to me. You need to get her on a plane, now."

"Wait, what? No, that's not possible. I need to get her to a hospital now."

"Agent Vaughn, Kendall has just sent a team to extract Sydney. If they do not find her, they will search every house, building and hospital in the area..."

Vaughn could tell he wasn't telling him something. "Why would Kendall do that?"

"We heard from the Elysian this afternoon."

"What!" He demanded, his voice raising slightly. "What do they want."

Jack was silent for a moment.

"They believe, the Chosen One, Sydney, will bring forth Rambaldi's greatest works through means of a...child." Vaughn was silent. "They believe this child will become the Passanger and finish Rambaldi's work." Vaughn looked bewildered at Sydney, who was looking up at him weakly. 

"Jack, what does this mean?" Vaughn asked in a somewhat hushed tone.

"Kendall believes Sydney has been intro impregnanted through in vitro fertilization."

Vaughn didn't respond, just looked down at Sydney again.

"You must take my daughter to the safe house Agent Vaughn."

Vaughn's mind was swarming and his reaction was slow. "Yeah...okay...wait. I thought you said that CIA would search everywhere."

"Yes, but that has been accounted for. My contact made sure of that and I have already questioned the CIA about it. As far as Kendall is concerned, a very sick and contagious person is living in that house, which is heavily guarded at all hours. No one is allowed in or out."

Vaughn's mind was still in a haze, but as Sydney's shaking became more violent, he was able to keep up with what was going on. "Mr. Bristow," Vaughn said in a very harsh tone, "Sydney needs a doctor now. We could go over a few towns and get her help there."

Jack returned the harsh and cold tone with his own. "Agent Vaughn, you are not listening. The CIA will check everywhere for anyone who has Sydney's assumed injuries." Vaughn went over the list of normal torture injuries in his head, and reazlied the CIA would have no problem finding Sydney based on that list, considering it appeared that almost all tactics had been used on her. Jack continued. "There is a first-aid kit at the safe house. You need to get Sydney there now. Keep her..." he faltered before collecting himself, "keep her alive and I will see to it that we get Sydney the help she needs." Vaughn nodded, realizing Jack couldn't see what he was doing. "Keep my updated," Jack concluded before ending the call.

Jack sat back in his chair as he let a long, grief-filled sigh. He felt totally helpless. After shutting his eyes for a moment, Jack reached in to his desk drawer, lifting a couple pieces of paper, before gently taking out a black picture frame. He looked at it for a moment...Sydney was 5 and on his shoulders. She was snatching the hair on his head in her little fingers, and her laugh could be heard even now. Jack looked at it for another moment, and then put it down on his desk, not taking his eyes off it.

Vaughn put the phone back in his pocket and looked down at Sydney again. "You ready?" He asked gently as he brushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear. She smiled weakly and nodded her head a little. Vaughn looked at her for another second...He had never seen sadness and pain like this in her eyes before, despite everything they had been through. He then stood up slowly. Trying to walk quickly but smoothly, Vaughn headed in the direction of the safehouse.

"What was all that about," Sydney asked, her voice no more then a mere whisper, despite her best efforts. Vaughn looked lovingly back down at her. "Nothing you have to worry about now," he said as he quickened his pace.

After what seemed like an endless walk, Vaughn stopped and squinted his eyes, vaguely making out the little house in the distance. "Hey," he said lightly, "we're almost there."

As he began walking again, he waited for Sydney's response. It was then he started to feel her go limp in his arms, and he stopped again, sitting down abrubtly on the hard earth.

"Syd?" He asked, gently taking her chin ang guiding her face back to his.

Sydney tried to say something, but all that came out was a disheveled sigh. She closed her eyes tightly, and tried again. A quiet Vaughn managed to escape her lips.

Vaughn looked down at her, extremely worried. "I'm right here, Syd. Look," he guided her face in the direction of the house, "we're almost there. Can you hold on for me just a little longer."

He grabbed her face a little harder as he realized she was starting to slip in to unconciousness. "Syd, Syd...stay with me."

Her eyes now shut, she let out a small whimper. Again, she breathed his name. "Vaughn."

Terrified, Vaughn jumped up and started jogging towards the house, looking down at Sydney every other second. She was clearly unconcious at this point, and her head was bouncing lightly against his chest as his feet met the ground. "Come on Syd," he whispered to her over and over again as they drew closer to the house. When he had reached the front door, he was a little short of breath. He sat down with Sydney again, right outside the front door. He reached in to his left pocket and pulled out the keys Jack had given him before he left.

"Syd," he said before gently shaking her shoulders. "Syd, we're hear." He put a hand on her cheek and used the other to smooth down her filth-filled hair. "Syd, can you open your eyes for me?" He asked, knowing she wouldn't respond. Feeling her body fall limper, he had a sneaking, heart-breaking suspicion that she had just stopped breathing. With a shaking hand, he lightly put his fingers on her neck. Not feeling anything, he pushed them in a little deeper. THUMP, THUMP, THUMP. Vaughn let out a heavy breath he hadn't realized he was holding in. It was weak, but her pulse was there. Lowering his ear to her mouth, he checked her breathing. It was so soft and so weak, Vaughn could hardly hear it. As he reached up, still sitting on the ground with Sydney, he put the key in the doorknob and turned it, letting it slowly fall open. He lifted up Sydney and walked through the door, praying Jack's first aid kit would supply him with enough.


	5. Chapter 5

As he walked through the door, locking it securely behind him with one hand, Vaughn had no time to take in his surroundings. Had he, however, he would have seen what appeared to be an ordinary house. He had been standing in the living room, complete with two chairs, a couch, a TV, and some lamps scattered all around. It was actually rather nice, and for a safehouse, had an oddly homey feel to it.

Ignoring everything around him, Vaughn ran through the kitchen, laundry room, and den before entering the bedroom. It was nice enough. The four-poster bed was king-sized, and two French doors led out to a small patio. The blinds were open, and the sunlight was pouring happily into the room.

Vaughn, as if holding a newborn child, placed Sydney very gently on the bed. After looking at her for a second, he moved into action. He scurried over to the doors and dragged the blackout curtains, blocking out the sun. Before he left the room, he turned on the lights and dimmed them.

He entered the room next to the bedroom, the den. He scoured through everything, tearing open drawers and frantically pulling out books. When he found nothing, he moved on to the laundry room, where he went through the same process. It wasn't until he reached the bathroom closet he found what he was looking for...The first aid kit Jack had so elequently promised. He grabbed it and ran back to Sydney.

Laying the huge suitcase on the other side of the bed, he opened it quickly and looked at what was inside. Ointments, bandages, gauze, adhesive tape, soap, tweezers, medications, scissors, safety pins, hot and cold packs, rubbing alcohol, thermometer, plastic gloves, batteries, flashlight, administrative CPR mouthpiece, braces, and a blanket - all the things a normal first aid kit contained. Realizing there was another level, however, Vaughn gently lifted it and relieved when he saw 2 guns, an automated external defibrillator, a heart rate moniter, and a pre-ready intravenous infusion administrator. Silently praying he wouldn't have to use any of these things, Vaughn quickly unpacked all the items and layed them out on the bed. Also, despite his years of CIA training, Vaughn was extremely thankful Jack had supplied a How To manual for everything, because his brain was not working as quickly as usual.

Realizing she needed to be stabalized, he quickly figured out how to hook her up to the heart rate moniter. He got the IV set up next, and hesitantly found a vein in her hand to slide it in to. He watched the screen monitering her heart rate for a moment, and then began to undress her.

He began with the jacket he thrown over her shoulders, and then moved on to the shirt. He inhaled deeply as he began to raise her tank-top. Only her stomache was revealed, but it was enough for him. The left skin covering her now emaciated ribcage was completely black and blue...In fact, it hardly looked like skin at all. On top of that, what looked to Vaughn like symbols had been engraved into her and were now either open and bleeding or red and raw, like a scab was trying unsuccessfully to form over them. Filled with dread, Vaughn pushed on. Careful of her right arm, Vaughn guided the tank top off her body and over her head. What looked like bite marks were etched in to her breasts and more bruises and cuts were scattered all over her chest. As the tears flew from his eyes, he turned his head abruptly, making sure none would drop on to Sydney's raw skin.

He ran his fingers gently down her chest and stomache until he reached her pants. As he began to pull them down, he realized they were extremely loose, and didn't understand how they hadn't fallen off of her before. As Vaughn expected, Sydney's legs looked exactly as her stomache did, minus the engravings.

Vaughn looked down at the now near naked woman lying before him. The woman he had always known to be strong and powerful now lay in front of him pale and vulnerable. Vaughn had to force himself to tear his eyes off of her. He began cleaning her wounds and dressing them, apologizing each time to her unconcious form as he used alcohol and disinfectant cream. One he had finished her front side, he gently rolled her on to her back, careful to not hurt her arm or disturb the IV. Once again, Vaughn began tending to all of her wounds, trying not to think about how each one was given to her.

When he finished, he rolled her back over and looked at her right arm. He shook the cold pack and began to gently wrap her arm in the ace bandage, crreating several layers before putting the cold pack in. After making a sling out of his shirt and tying it securely behind her neck, he lifted her hands gently in his palms, staring at each swollen finger. He patiently stabalized each with braces. As he looked at her face for the first time since he had layed her down, he noticed beads of red on the pillow. Startled, he genty lifted her head. "F, her head is bleeding?" Vaughn thought as the panic he had been chasing away sunk in. He looked back at the heart moniter, before turning to his own chest and arms, which ofcourse, were covered in her blood.

He had Sydney's blood on him. He was covered in it. He had never felt so disgusted in his life. He wanted the people who did this to die the most painful of deaths at his hand. Struggling to keep from breaking down, Vaughn snatched his cell phone from his pocket. His hands were so shaky he had to dial the number 3 times before he got it right.

"Bristow."

Vaughn was silent. What do you say to the father of the dying daughter you love? Vaughn thought. No! Not dying, wounded, he corrected himself quickly.

"Hello"

Vaughns throat was tight and he tried to swallow, but only felt pain.

"Vaughn?"

Still no response.

"Vaughn!"

"I'm here," Vaughn said, trying to mask his fear but ending up with no more than a whisper.

Jack was silent for a second as his mind filled with grief. He too tried to hide this, but even his normally strong voice came out rather shaky and uneven. "Is she..."

Vaughn realized what he had led Jack to believe and quickly jumped in, his voice stronger. "No, no. She's okay...I mean she's not okay...she's just not..."

Silence.

"Sydney needs medical attention, Jack," Vaughn said, using his fn for the first time. "Her head is bleeding and I think she has some...internal bleeding." His voice was starting to fail him again. "I've done all I can." Vaughn concluded just as his voice broke.

Again, Jack was quiet. "You still can't take her to the hospital. I'll see what I can do."

"But, wait!" Vaughn said to no one, realizing Jack had already hung up. Steadying himself with a few deep breathes, Vaughn turned his attention back to Sydney. You have to be strong for her, he thought to himself. For Sydney.

Vaughn, remebering the goosebumps that covered every inch of Sydney, gently moved her over and pulled down the covers. He placed her back in her spot and covered her with the blankets, as well as the blanket from the first aid kit, hoping it would be enough to warm her.

He reached out and touched her hand. His voice sounded like a sob as he spoke. "Please wake up for me Syd. Please. I can't loose you now. Not now. Not to them," Vaughn said referring to the Elysian. "Sydney, if you come back to me I promise I will take better care of you. I PROMISE," Vaughn stressed, pressing himself to continue. "Just, let me know you're okay. Can you move your head a little, maybe? Or move your eyes?" Vaughn knew he sounded ridiculus and desperate, but he was...He was SO desperate. "Well whenever you're ready to wake up, I'll be right here. Just...be okay," he pleaded with her, before laying his head on her hand and crying.


	6. Chapter 6

Vaughn had spent the night next to Sydney slipping in and out of sleep, checking on her every 15 minutes. When he had finally fallen into a deep sleep, the sun was just beginning to rise. The blinds were closed, however, and that was not what woke him up. When he heard banging on the front doors, he snapped awake and ran out of the room. He stared at the still unconcious Sydney before closing the door softly, and then ran to the living room to listen to what was going on outside.

'KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK'

"CIA! OPEN UP!"

'Sh,' Vaughn thought, as his eyes traveled back in the direction of Sydney's room.

"Open this door now!" Another voice.

Vaughn quickly surveyed the house, making sure all windows and doors were locked, as well as maing sure the unbreakable security system was on. 

"Open up NOW! We are aware of your position but we need to do a brief inspection right now," another new voice shouted. "If this door isn't open in 10 minutes.." the voice faded before adding, "We have lined the side of your house with a bomb, set to activate when we ring the doorbell. Now open up!"

'So that's what the noise was,' Vaughn though, referring to the scraping noises he had heard a little earlier which he assumed were birds or the wind.

After looking around wildly again, Vaughn ran back to the bedroom, still hearing the hammering and voices behind him.

After running to Sydney and making sure she was still okay, Vaughn grabbed his cell phone and frantically dialed Jack's number.

"Bristow."

"They're outside!" Vaughn said in a hushed voice.

"What?" Jack asked, worried.

"CIA is outside demanding to be let in."

Silence.

"I thought you said they wouldn't come," Vaughn whispered accousingly.

"Well I was under the impression the wouldn't, Agent Vaughn!" Jack replied, frustration and fear mounting in him. "Alright, here's what you're going to do...In the laundry room, in the closet and under the mat, there is a passageway. You must take Sydney into and wait until I can get someone to meet you."

"I can't do that!" Vaughn replied, his voice raising. Looking around the room again, Vaughn added in a whisper, "Sydney is in critical condition Jack. I can't take her off the machines and drag her in to a pit to wait for someone to pick us up."

"Well I'm afraid that is the only option you have Agent Vaughn."

"There must be another way...Where does the passage lead out?"

"Agent Vaughn, you are not listening. If the CIA has found you they are monitering all movement in and out of the house. The tunnel leads to a car dealership about 9 miles away. I have no doubt CIA will be there."

Vaughn rubbed his forehead with his hand, turning back to look at Sydney before asking, "How long is it going to take to get someone to us?"

Jack was silent.

"How long?"

"I'm not sure. My only non-CIA allie in Moscow was announced dead last month."

"So call in someone else!"

"CIA is monitering all movement, Agent Vaughn! If someone arrives from another town or country the CIA will know about it and I garuntee, will be hold them for questioning, if not follow them."

Silence on both ends. 

Vaughn looked at his watch, realizing they only had about 5 more minutes before the side of the house was set to collapse.

"Jack, we don't have much time. What are we doing?"

"I will figure something out, Agent Vaughn. Be prepared to be picked up in 2 hours."

Vaughn was frustrated and breathing heavily.

"Take care of her," Jack concluded before hanging up.

Vaughn looked over at Sydney, who if possible, had grown even paler over night. He walked over to her and sat on the edge of the bed, stroking her hair with one hand and holding her cheek with the other.

"Syd, I'm going to make this okay...I promise," Vaughn said before kissing her lightly on the lips. "I have to take you off the IV now, but I need you to hold on for me," he said, as he pulled down the covers a little and gently pulled out her hand. Wincing, he slid the IV out and placed it on the table. He took off the wires for the heart moniter and yanked the blankets out of the bed, gently wrapping her in them. He then moved away from her, after kissing her again on the lips, and grabbed the defibrillator, shoved the two guns in his pockets along with some bandages and ointment, and hesitantly, grabbed the CPR mouthpiece. Looking at Sydney again, Vaughn ran out of the room and into the laundry room, where as Jack had promised, there was a closet with a well hidden door that led underground. Walking quickly down the stairs and setting down all of the equiptment he had brought, walked back up the stairs, leaving the doors open.

As went back into the bedroom and picked up Sydney with the blankets wrapped around her. When her head fell limply back, Vaughn gently guided it so it rested on his shoulder. Rushing to to the laundry room, Vaughn walked into the closet and closed the door, considering whether or not he should lock it. Not wanting the CIA team to be suspicios, Vaughn left in unlocked and walked down the stairs, gently laying Sydney on the cold dirt before walking back up, covering the entrance, and locking it.

When he was sure they were safe, Vaughn looked around the passage. It was clearly dug out many years ago as the dirt walls had hardened and were beginning to crumble. There were a few florescent lights traveling down what seemed like the endless passage.Vaughn figured it would be better to move further away from the entrance, and after checking Sydney again, moved all the equiptment about half a mile down, and then traveling back to get Sydney.

As he scooped her back up, he heard loud footsteps and doors being slammed open, as well as men's voices, though to Vaughn it just sounded like loud mumbling. He tightened his grip around Sydney already and ran to where he had left the equiptment.

After about 4 hours of waiting and not being able to reach Jack, Vaughn was growing more and more frustrated by the second. Sydney lay on the ground next to him, and her breathing had become shallow and uneven. In attempts to comfort her, Vaughn taken off the shirt he had used on her before and gently placed it underneath her head. Not taking his eyes off her, Vaughn had stroked every part of Sydney's hair and face multiple times before frantically calling Jack. After waiting for over 4 hours, Vaughn wanted to travel further down the passage way, but didn't want to disrupt Sydney.

About a half an hour later, Vaughn heard what sounded like a motor coming from a distance. After about 5 minutes, headlights shone and Vaughn could make out what appeared to be a man on a motorcycle which was attached to a small carry-on seat. 

Stopping feet away from Sydney and Vaughn, the man pulled off his helmet revealing a thin head of gray hair and cold, distant brown eyes.

"How the hell did you get here?" Vaghn nearly shouted.

"No time," Jack responded. "Get Sydney into the back with you," he added, quickly letting his eyes wash over her unconsious form.

"Come on!" Jack pushed, grabbing some of the things Vaughn had brought and stuffing them in a small compartment in the side-car.

Once Vaughn was safely in the side-car, with Sydney in his lap, Jack turned the motorcycle around abruptly before zooming down the tunnel.

Vaughn screamed over the blazing wind and leaned in to Jack. "How did you get here?"

"Since your first call I have been trying to make my way over here," Jack shouted back. "I was in Tula when I recieved your last call. I managed to latch on to a family when entering Moscow. As I suspected, the CIA were inspecting everyone who arrived. Seeing this before unloading, I places a small bomb in the far end of the train, commanding the whole teams attention and allowing me to escape."

"But how..."

"Later!" Jack yelled back, cutting Vaughn off.

Jack pressed the gas harder, making the motorcycle lurch a little before speeding off into the distance.


	7. Chapter 7

As they reached what appeared to be the end of the tunnel, Jack began to slow down. When they finally came to a stop, Vaughn felt totally numb and could still hear the whipping air in his ears.

Lifting Sydney up gently, he checked all her vitals, feelings Jack's eyes on his backs. Still facing Sydney, Vaughn looked forward, down the long tunnel they had just traveled.

"What do we do now?" He asked Jack, still not looking at him.

"You wait," Jack responded, distant as ever.

"What are you going to do?" Vaughn demanded, turning around to face Jack, with his left hand still on Sydney. "And how did you get in here without the CIA noticing?"

"There is no time Agent Vaughn. Now I'm going to go out that way," Jack said, pointing to the entrance directly in front of them. "The CIA will see me, and once they have me secured, they will find this passage and investigate. This should happen in roughly 11 minutes. You and Sydney must leave before they enter, but not too soon after I leave. You will use that passage over there," Jack said, referring to a seemingly innocent crack in the ceiling of the tunnel. "You will take her as far as you can travel on foot. Once you've reached Podolsk, you are to call this number," Jack said, handing Vaughn a white piece of paper with a number written on it. "My contact will see to it Sydney gets help."

'Yeah, just like your contact made sure the safehouse wouldn't be raided,' Vaughn thought to himself, though he didn't dare say it outloud. Vaughn was silent for a moment, letting what Jack had said sink in. It took him a minute to realize exactly what Jack was doing...

"Wait, Jack...You're turning yourself in?" Vaughn was standing at this point.

With an emotionless glare at Vaughn, Jack said cooly, "It does appear that way."

Vaughn looked at him for another moment before nodding, turning away, and bending down to Sydney again.

After about a minute past, Vaughn felt Jack's hand on his shoulder. His first reaction was to defend himself, but with a shocking revalation, Vaughn realized Jack was simply reaching out to him. He turned his head slightly and looked at Jack, whose normally empty eyes were now filled with sadness.

"Tell Sydney I love her," Jack said. And with one last glance at Sydney, Jack removed his hand from Vaughn's shoulder and switfly moved to the door. With no hesitation, he pulled it open and walked outside.

Staring at the now sealed door, Vaughn was too shocked by this suprising display of emotion to move. After about a minute, Vaughn was able to snap out of it. Grabbing the things he brought with him and stuffing them in the backpack Jack had brought Vaughn, he stepped back over to Sydney and leaned in next to her.

"It's almost over Syd," he whispered. "Now you just need to hold on a little longer."

He looked at her for another second and stroked back some windblown hair. He then looked at his watch, scooped her up in the blankets, and made his way over to the crack in the ceiling.

At first, Vaughn tried to use his elbow to open it. When this wasn't enough, Vaughn placed Sydney gently back on the ground before reaching back up and pushing on the crack. After about a minute, the crack gave way a proved to be a removeable block. Placing it next to him on the floor, Vaughn poked his head out and looked around. They were behind the car dealership. Leaning out a little further, Vaughn made out a swarm of men in a circle whom he knew to be the CIA surrounding Jack. Ducking back in a picking up Sydney, he gently lifted her over his head and layed her down on the grass. Making sure she wouldn't roll back on, Vaughn hoisted himself up, before realizing he had to cover the block. He went back down, threw the block up, climbed back out, and made sure the hole was securely covered. Looking around again, Vaughn swooped up Sydney and headed South to Podolsk.

After about 2 hours of walking, Vaughn had reached a highly populated area. He was sure the CIA wasn't following him, and began to slow down.

He looked around and took in his surroundings. He was surrounded by buildings and busy streets, people walking in every direction in a hurry. 'Must still be in Moscow,' Vaughn thought, knowing farms and large factories would make him aware he was in Podolsk.

He moved on to the sidewalk, though he immeaditly regretted it when people started bumping in to him, and through bumping in to him, disturbing Sydney. Moving further away from the stream of people, Vaughn looked down at Sydney as he had been doing the entire trip.

He looked back up before doing a double take...Sydney had just moved her lips. He was sure of it. He stopped walking and pulled her in a little closer.

"Syd? Syd can you hear me?"

Nothing.

"Syd?"

Her lips parted. Her lips parted! Vaughn was ecstatic.

"It's okay Syd," Vaughn said, frantically excited. He looked around, finding an empty bench on the sidewalk. "Hold on just one sec, Sydney," Vaughn said, making his way to the bench.

Once seated, he let Sydney's legs go, causing them to spread out clumsily on the bench. Midnful of her arm and her still bleeding head, Vaughn kept the one arm around her shoulders, but pulled her up a little more, so she was almost in a sitting position.

"Sydney?" He asked as quietly as he could as the murmur of the streets grew louder.

Her mouth moved a little, and her eyes began to flutter. He tried to fight off a smile, knowing this meant very little. He ran his fingers through her hair. She began to open her eyes slowly, squinting a little as they readjusted to the light.

He couldn't fight it off any longer, and allowed an adorable dimpled smile to spread across his face. 'First in weeks,' something in the back of his mind reminded him. "Hey beautiful," he said, still smiling and still brushing her hair.

He could see her start to form letters with her lips...All that came out was a shaky sigh. She opened her lips a couple of times, hoping her would realize her throat was too dry to allow spech.

"Water?" Vaughn asked frantically.

Sydney looked at him for a moment, then slowly closed her eyes. Once they were closed, she squinted as tightly as she could, before slowly opening them again.

"Good, good," Vaughn mumbled, smiling dumbly down at her. Staring at her, it took him a minute to register what she had just 'said.' "Oh! Okay" Vaughn smiled brighter before looking up to the people rushing by. "?????" Water? Water? Does Any have water? Vaughn repeated this several times, getting no responses from the busy people. Wanting to stand but not wanting to disturb Sydney, Vaughn continued to helplessly watch as the people walked by him. After about 2 minutes, one woman stopped to look at him. After survarying him and Sydney, she reached into the bag she was carrying and took out a half full water bottle. She hesitantly held it out to him.

"?... ?" Thank you...Thank you Vaughn managed to breath out. The woman smiled quickly before turning and walking away.

Turning back down to Sydney, who had closed her eyes, Vaughn gently rocked her with her arm as he spoke. "I'm going to sit you up Syd," He said, gently guiding her into a sitting position in his arms. Her eyes were still closed, but Vaughn was sure she was still concious. Putting the water where his body met hers, he used one hand to hold her as the hand behind her shoulders moved up to her neck, placing two fingers behind her head, carefully avoiding her wound. Once he had her securely, Vaughn picked up the water bottle with his other hand and opened it with his mouth. Wiping off the top on his shirt, he leaned in closer to Sydney. "Can you open your mouth a little for me?" He asked coaxingly. At first, Sydney elicited no response, but then very slowly parted her lips and allowed her jaw to slowly open a little.

"Thatta girl," Vaughn said smiling, bringing the bottle to her lips. He tipped it slowly, allowing some water to fall into her mouth. He pulled it away and allowed her to slowly close her mouth, and swallow. Though he eyes were still closed, she winced as the cool liquid made it's way down her throat.

"Just a little more Syd," Vaughn said as he brought the bottle back to her lips. Repeating this process a few times, Vaughn was very careful to keep his emotions in check. At one point, however, he had gotten so excited, he tipped the bottle a little too much, causing water to pour every where, including straight down her throat. She immeaditly began coughing, though it appeared to take all of her energy, and her chest bounded up and down quickly. Trying to sooth her and apolgizing profusely, Vaughn wiped her mouth and sat her up completely so she was leaning against him, her head on his. He began rubbing circles slowly on her back, realizing it was hurting her when she tensed up a little.

Her coughing stopped, and she let herself rest against him. They sat there for a few minutes, her eyes closed, his eyes on her, not noticing the stares they got as people walked by. Sydney moved her head a little, and Vaughn felt her take a deep breath in.

"Vaughn," she breathed into his ear.

Not knowing how to respond, Vaughn took her chin in his hand and kissed her forehead over and over.

When he stopped kissing her, he rested his lips on her forehead, and it warmed her to feel his smile on her face. Opening her eyes partially, she tried to look at him.

Again, she gathered all her energy and pulled back a little. She could see his suprise, and a hint of dissapointment, which she tried to ease with a smile, though her effort was hardly noticable Unless you're Vaughn, ofcourse. She drew in another deep breath.

This time her voice was present, though hardly distinguishable through the think rasp. "Hey," she said looking him in the eye.

His already dimpled smile brightened. "Hello," Vaughn responded devilishly, realizing then his voice was rasped as well.

She drew in another breath, this one sharper then the last. "I didn't..." she coughed weakly twice before Vaughn pressed his finger gently to her lips.

"Shhh...We can talk later," he said softly, still smiliing foolishly.

He felt her nod her head a little, though it was not visable. "I need to..." She continued, drawing in more air. "I didn't..." she stopped again to take another deep breath. "Get to say..." her eyes looked directly in to his, with a fiercness he hadn't seen since last month. "I love you too," she finally breathed, small pools forming in her tired eyes. "Ofcourse I love you," she breathed into his neck as she closed her eyes again, allowing to revel in his embrace.

As she buried her face in his neck, Vaughn kissed her temples, too filled with emotion to say anything. He looked absently at her for another moment before smiling into her cheek. "Try and rest now," he said into her, his smile fading slighlty. He was silent for a moment as he felt her body relax into his. "And I love you so much, Syd...You have no idea," he whispered into her ear.

'Yes I do,' Sydney thought, before falling back into darkness.


	8. Chapter 8

Vaughn was fairly certain Sydney had drifted back into unconciousness, but continued talking to her anyway. He lifted her off the bench and headed in the direction of Podolsk. After walking on down the emergency lane of the highway that went from Moscow to Criema, Vaughn saw a rather small and acient looking sign that read "????????" Welcome to Podolsk.

As thin and frail as Sydney was, Vaughn had to be very careful carrying her, and after another few hours or walking on the hard cement, had grown rather tired. Thrilled he had reached his destination with the added benefit of Sydney's now steady breathing, Vaughn gently layed her down under the sign, making sure the blankets were covering her securely. He looked around and brushed a hand through his hair before reaching into his pocket and taking out the piece of paper Jack had handed him, along with his cell phone. Turning back around to face Sydney again, Vaughn let out a sigh of relief as he scanned the horizon while he let the phone ring. After two rings, Vaughn began to hear something in the thick woods to the right of him. Turning, he closed his phone. He listened and heard it once again. A cell phone ring.

"Hello?" Vaughn called out.

A shadowy figure emerged from behind a tree, allowing Vaughn to only see his silhoutte. Vaughn instinctevly moved in front of Sydney, blocking her from the person's view.

"Landell?" Vaughn asked, vaugely remembering the name Jack had thrown at him eariler.

"Not quite..." the man said with a heavy British accent as he emerged from behind the tree, moving into the fading sunlight.

Vaughn felt his entire body tense up as he reached for his gun.

"Ah, ah, ah," the man warned him cooly, showing Vaughn he already had a gun out and ready to fire. "Now is that any way to treat an old friend?" He asked with a devlish grin, still pointing the gun at Vaughn's chest.

Vaughn wanted more then anything to knock the gun out of the mans hands, but didn't want to leave Sydney unprotected.

"What the hell do you want, Sark?" Vaughn said, his temples pulsing and his hands clenched into fists so tight he suspected were bleeding.

"Just a little help," Sark said, before pulling the trigger.


	9. Chapter 9

He felt his body numb as his legs collapsed under him.

"What the F did you do Sark!" Vaughn screamed, not even looking to see the man whom he adressed.

He took off his already over-used shirt and pushed into her right shoulder, which was now gushing blood.

He felt the tears returning and he pushed on her harder, hoping slowing the flow of blood would slow the flow of his tears.

"Syd...Syd," he moaned weakly. Pushing down for another second, Vaughn jumped up quickly, not caring that Sark had moved closer and still had the gun pointed at him. Before Sark could react, Vaughn had him by the throat, moving so violently that they lurched forward, slamming Sark into a tree.

Struggling for breath, but seeming almost amused by Vaughn's actions, Sark pointed the gun into Vaughn's stomache. Sark spoke, though it sounded more like moans then a voice. "Now Mr. Vaughn..." he wriggled uncomfortably in Vaughn's grip, still gasping for air. "If you kill me, she dies too," Sark finished, motioning to Sydney with his eyes.

Vaughn looked menacingly into Sark's eyes for another moment, and then pushed him harder against the tree before releasing him.

As Sark leaned against the tree, trying to catch his breath in the most sophisticated way possible, he looked up and made contact with Vaughn's eyes, who had yet to move from his face. "Well I've got to say," Sark said with a laugh, still panting slightly and rubbing his neck, "for a second there I wasn't sure what you're going to do."

Vaughn swiftly punched Sark in the face, and as Sark stumbled backwards, blinded by the blow, Vaughn reached for his gun and pointed it at Sark, the evil in his eyes growing stronger by the second.

Shaking his head, Sark stumbled backwards a little more before dropping his gun and putting his hands defensively in the air. Vaughn's grip tightened on the gun, and his face was contorted into a mixture of a pained and angered expression.

"Agent Vaughn. I am prepared to get Sydney into a hospital under the alias, Sydney Colini. We have a doctor who is aware of out situation and has personally worked with both Irina and Jack. I have the papers right here..." Sark, still looking at Vaughn, began to reach into his jacket pocket.

"Don't move." Vaughn's words were filled with more hatred and anger then Sark had ever heard before, and considering the people he dealt with, that said a lot. Sark, looking defeated, but his arms slowly back into the air, letting his head hang a little lower, but still not breaking eye contact with Vaughn.

Sark spoke a little more hesitantly this time, unable to make his fear. "Agent Vaughn, Ms. Bristow needs help now," Sark said, breaking the eye contact with Vaughn momentarily as he let his eyes graze over Sydney's disappeaing figure. "I understand your unwillingness to trust me," Sark pressed on, frightened by Vaughn's stillness, "but I have as much to loose as you do." They continued to look at eachother. "Agent Vaughn, she needs help!" Sark yelled, again looking at Sydney. Not even a second later, Sark felt cool metal slaming across his face.

"Don't you DARE look at her!" Vaughn spat at him, reveling in the sight of Sark's blood.

At this point, Sark was on his knees, tiping a little. He had one hand over his forehead that was now bleeding freely, while he kept the other in the air. He blinked quickly, trying to keep the dripping blood from entering his eyes. He moved his hand slowly and looked at the blood now covering it, before looking up at Vaughn. "Nice swing," Sark said, nearly letting out a laugh. Vaughn took another menacing step forward, scaring Sark almost as much as the gun was. "Now listen. Listen!" Sark commanded as Vaughn's face somehow grew even angrier. He spoke quickly now. "I need Sydney. I have reason to believe, as you must, that the Elysian, has taken her eggs to make the prophecy of the Passanger come to be..." - Somewhere in the back of Vaughn's mind, a hollowed voice let out a scream of relief, thanking G-d Rambaldi's baby wasn't growing inside her. - "...I knew that unless Sydney was in dire condition you wouldn't allow me to take her to a hospital. I simply need to perform a test to find out whether or not this rumor is true. Meanwhile, she will be given the medical care she needs." Sark was looking pleadingly into Vaughn's eyes, who had yet to move a face muscle.

"Who sent you!" Vaughn demanded.

"I'm afriad I can't..." Sark began, looking at the ground as he spoke.

"WHO SENT YOU!" Vaughn screamed again, slamming the gun against Sark's cheek.

"Alright! Alright..." Sark said, finally meeting Vaughn's eyes. "Irina Derevko."

Sark was sure he had seen some change in emotion momentarily in Vaughn's eyes, though no trace was left now. Vaughn continued to glare at Sark.

"Listen, I know you still don't believe me, but if you love her like you think you do..." Sark groaned quickly as Vaughn jerked the gun against his cheek again. "...But you have no other choice."

Vaughn looked at Sark another moment and let his hand drop. He knew Sark was right. If he killed Sark, Sydney was dead...There was no way, even with Sark's papers, that Vaughn could get her to a hospital in time and see to it she was given the proper health and proper cover. If he went with Sark and he was lying, Sydney would be dead, too. Struggling with the fact that he had no other option, Vaughn looked defeatedly back at Sydney, realizing at once what a mistake that was...He had been so caught up in his anger, he had almost forgotten about Sydney completely...If that made any sense.

He looked back at Sark, the madness in his eyes no gone, replaced only by fear and sadness. "Alright," Vaughn's voice now hardly resembled the harsh one he had used just moments ago. "Let's go..." Sark looked up at him for a moment, not moving. "Now!" Vaughn commanded, the sadness still present in his voice.

Sark stood and hesitantly took a step in front of Vaughn, following Vaughn's gun with his eyes as it was placed behind his back. "Move." Vaughn commanded, pushing the gun harder into his back, causing him to stumble forward. Sark stopped for a second to get his balance, nodded, and walked straight towards Sydney, who was now surrounded by a pool of blood.


	10. Chapter 10

Vaughn sat back in the cushioned chair, finding it's softness irritating. He leaned into it a little more, pushing it in until he felt the hard wood hidden under the layers of cushion. He closed his eyes and rubbed them with his fingers, thinking over the days events.

After Sark and Vaughn had gone back to Sydney, Vaughn had allowed Sark to call his contact and let him know they were ready for pickup. Meanwhile, Vaughn had trying to tend to Sydney who looked still and lifeless, or, as some would put it, dead. Vaugn, however, paid no attention to this and was treating her as though she was responsive and energetic.

He had slowed the blood pouring from her shoulder and was talking to her animatedly, not noticing Sark's confused glares.

"So you think you'll be able to get the blood out of your shirt this time, Syd?"

Sark just stood there thinking, 'He has officially cracked.'

And that was basically true. After the emotion rollercoaster Vaughn had been on before encountering Sark, the last incident had just pushed him over the edge. Realizing this, Sark took note that this would probably be the best time to contact Irina. Before he had a chance to, however, he heard the screech of hot tires slam against the pavement.

Sark watched as the man in the van neared them, waiting for Vaughn to react violently. When Vaghn didn't even look up, Sark hesititantly made his way to the man.

"So is she ready to be moved?" The mman asked Sark quietly, both staring at the almost commical scene playing out in front of them.

Vaughn had proceeded to use wild hand gestures concerning whatever he was talking to her about. He was talking rather loudly, and acting as though the motionless woman in front of him was responding to everything he did and said.

"Yeah. I'd be careful though," Sark said, now turning to the man. "He's rather protective of her."

The man nodded and moved foward quickly. He was extremely professional, and had no time for pleasantries. Before Vaughn had time to react, the man had scooped Sydney up in his arms, letting her head fall limply backwards.

When Vaughn realized what was happening, his attitude changed quickly. He grabbed teh gun that was next to him and stood up, aiming it at the mans head.

"Put her down."

Sark walked up to the man and put his hand on his shoulder.

"Told you," he said almost tauntingly to the man holding Sydney. He then turned to Vaughn. "Agent Vaughn, this is my contact, Mr. Quinn. He will be escorting us to Voronovo Hospital."

Vaughn kept the gun aimed at the mans head.

"I said put her down."

Quinn looked at Sark, who nodded, and laid Sydney back onto the ground. "We need to move quickly Agent Vaughn," he said, before quickly moving back to the van and opening the doors.

Vaughn finally let the gun drop, watching Sark move to the van before lifting Sydney and following them to the open doors.

He stepped in the back and set her down on small white bed placed in the middle of the medium-sized van. Once he heard the doors slam shut and the tires roll out from under them, he went into something of a trance.

It must've been an hour before they had reached the hospital, but Vaughn had no idea. His body and mind had gone completely numb, and he stared at the pale, lifeless form infront of him that vaguely resembled his Sydney.

His head spun around when he heard the back doors opening.

"We called ahead," Quinn said.

Although Vaughn had no idea what had been said or what was going on, he knew the next move was to bring Sydney inside. He picked her back up, moving quickly out of the van and in the direction Quinn and Sark was leading him.

As soon as they made it through the bright doors, Vaughn let his eyes adjust enough to make out doctors running towards him, ripping Sydney out of his hands.

At first, he felt he should protest, but before he knew what was happening, everything began blurring and his numb body started to throbb.

He felt a hand on his upper arm.

"Let's sit." It was Sark's voice.

Something in the back of his mind was reminding him that he should be disgusted by Sark's touch, but Vaughn couldn't hear it. He was too dazed to figure anything out. He let Sark lead him to a chair where he sat for what seemed like days.

After staring blankly in front of him for a good 5 hours, he subconsiously felt Sark sit next to him and sigh.

Sark changed positions, then sighed again.

"It really wasn't personal you know."

Vaughn couldn't care less. He didn't have the strength or energy to try and understand why Sark was sitting with him, much less talking to him.

He moved and sighed again when Vaughn didn't respond.

"I mean, I was under orders."

No response.

Sark stared ahead for a minute before turning again to Vaughn.

"Do you like soccer?"

Vaughn turned to face Sark agitated, but still looked straight ahead at the wall. "What the hell are you doing." His voice suggested the words were more of an accusation then a question.

Sark stared at Vaughn, unsure why he was attempting to reach out to his enemy. Without responding, Sark stood and walked away.

Vaughn, while glad to be away from Sark, wasn't prepared for the thoughts that started filling his mind. The numbness was wearing off, and the pain was setting in.

'She was so cold...Dead...My fault...In the shoulder...Should've blocked...So much blood...Dead...'

Vaughn buried his forehead in his hands trying to block out all these incoherent thoughts. He clutched his hair tightly, nearly pulling it out of his scalp. He was doing everything in his power to fight the scream that was itching to escape his throat. He looked up as someone walking towards him made his way into Vaughn's periferal view. A doctor.

Vaughn leaned back in the chair, knowing his legs wouldn't allow him to move to the doctor. He tried to get comfortable on the soft cushions as he pushed the days events to the back of his mind, focusing on the doctor walking towards him.


	11. Chapter 11

Vaughn watched as the doctor came closer and closer. Every movement he made seemed to be in slow motion, and his footsteps echoed off the white sanitary walls.

Vaughn sat up a little striaghted, still not trusting his legs to support him. He moved a little deeper into the back of the chair, hands still on the arm rests, following the doctors eyes with his own.

"Agent Vaughn?"

The doctor stood in front of him. He looked like a nice enough man. Balding around the top, with thick white hair still surrounding his ears and hiding his chin and upper lip. He was older and tall, but despite his harsh features, had soft, forgiving eyes.

Vaughn tried to swallow, finding himself unsuccesful when he realized his mouth was as dry as summer grass.

His eyes looked pleadingly into the doctors, and once Vaughn realized he couldn't find his voice, he nodded unsurely to the doctor.

The doctor paused another moment, studying the man before him.

"Agent Vaughn, I'm sorry..."


	12. Chapter 12

The doctor paused another moment, studying the man before him.

"Agent Vaughn, I'm sorry..."

With that, the whole word slowed down once more. Vaughn felt the colors around him dim, the noise blurring into one soft hum. He replayed the doctor's words over and over.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

On a subconcious level, he knew what those words meant, but he wasn't able to comprehend them in his mind.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorr..."

Vaughn's body pierced with pain as the realization hit him. All the colors flew back at him, harsher then ever before, the light noise like thunder to his ears, the soft cushion behind his back still tauntingly soft. And the pain came at full blast too. Vaughn felt as his heart shattered, draining all color and emotion from his face.

The doctor seemed to have moved back into normal speed as well.

"...We did all we could."

Vaughn heard the doctor on some level, but didn't really care what he had just said. He couldn't move any part of him. He let his eyes travel vacantly around the room until they met the doctor's. Vaughn wanted to say something, but the scream threatining to escape from his throat reminded him not to.

After about a minute, Vaughn let his lips part slightly, trying to form words, but having no clue what to say. A disheveled grunt was the sound that managed to escape.

The doctor's sympathetic look remained as he spoke.

"Would you like to say goodbye?"

Not taking his eyes off the doctor, Vaughn's head shot up.

"Do more." His voice was hardly a whisper, but so determined and so harsh that the words were heard by all.

"Agent Vaughn, I'm sorry. There's nothing more we can do..."

Vaughn had no idea what was happening. He felt as though he was still sitting in the chair, but realized he had sprung to life, pushing the doctor against a wall and seizing the collar of the white lab coat in his hands. He was so close, there noses almost met. Vaughn could feel the doctors breath on his face. When he spoke, his voice remained harsh and cold.

"Do more."

They stared into eachothers eyes for a moment - Vaughn's filled with desparation masked by anger, the doctors filled with fear. Before he knew what was happening, he felt a hand on his shoulders, pulling his tense form away from the doctor.

Still a little shocked by what had just happen, the doctor looked down and smoothed his jacket, feeling anger bubbling inside him. He looked up to confront the ungrateful man in front of him, but felt a pang of pain burst through his chest when he looked into his green eyes.

They were no longer filled with hate, but with pain and sadness he had never seen before. The doctor spoke softly, ignoring the nurse who was still pulling on the weak man, speaking to him quietly but not being heard by either.

"It's all in the hands of G-d now."

Vaughn stood for a moment, hearing his heartbeat, feeling his breath, and he wanted nothing more than to die. He didn't know how to handle this. How could he say goodbye to Sydney? What would he be without her? He couldn't process everything that was going on, and he knew the intensely horrific pain he felt now was nothing compared to what he would feel later.

He blinked, realizing he had been staring at the doctor for several minutes. He felt his eyes burn with unshed tears, not sure if they were for Sydney or from the bitter hospital air that had attacked his eyes, leaving them dry and empty.

"Where is she?" His voice was unrecognizable, even to him. He let the doctor lead him down the hall.

He felt as though he was watching from overhead, like a movie. It didn't feel real...It couldn't be real.

Still lost in his thoughts, he realized he was now standing face to face with a white door. The wide window had been covered by cheap hospital blinds from the inside, so Vaughn couldn't see inside. He was glad.

"I should warn you," the doctor next to him said, though his voice sounded miles away. "She may wake up. That won't...I would estimate another 5-6 hours. I don't think her body will be able to sustain the pain much longer after that."

Vaughn stared at the glass for a moment, letting his eyes adjust until he came into focus. He stared at the reflection, not really seeing it.

After about a minute, Vaughn noticed the doctor was no longer standing beside him. He put his hand on the doorknob and started turning, stopping after every movement as if waiting for the nightmare he was living to end.

Finally, he felt the knob jerk, letting him impatiently know there was no where else to turn.

He tried gathering himself, but knew it was no use.

He pushed his body against the door, somewhat soothed by the cold window glass against his cheek.

And there she was.

Again.

In front of him, but so far away.

He stood still for a moment, allowing his body to straighten up slighlty.

And as he stared, he felt the pain deepen.

It was a knew pain, though. Pain he didn't know existed. He had been through death before, been through loss, but this...It felt surreal. He felt every inch of his body ache for her, long for her voice, her smile.

Her smile. The smile he been waiting so desperately to see again. Now he would never see it again.

He inched closer and closer, reaching her side after about 5 minutes. He didn't even notice when the nurse closed the door behind him.

He sat down abrputly on the inviting chair next to her bead.

He looked at her, allowing himself to take every detail of her in.

She was paler then before, which he hadn't even realize was possible. Her lips were so dry they looked as though they hadn't seen water for weeks. The fluerescent lights ennunciated every wound, every errasion, every cut he had so tenderly cared for just hours ago...It felt like months.

He watched her, waiting for her to move, to twitch, to groan. But there was nothing - Literally. All the things he loved about her had been sucked out...She was just a shell of the Sydney he knew. He reached up a shaky hand, no knowing what he expected to find as he let his hand hover over her cheek, not daring to touch it. The heat, love, energy, passion that usually radiated from it was gone, and all he felt was cold.

His eyes pricked and he let the tears fall, bringing his hands back down at his side. He sat for a while, crying silently, only the steady beep of the heart moniter keeping him sane.

Vaughn had no idea how much time had passed, but he realized his cheeks were layered with the salty tears that had dried. He cleared his throat, suprised to hear a noise at all.

He blinked a couple of times, finally gathering enough courage to try and speak.

"Hi." His voice was hoarse and filled with pain, but he was relieved he could be heard at all.

Hesitantly, he let his eyes fall from her face to her battered hands. They had reset Sydney's fingers and were now each rapped securely in a temporary cast, as was the rest of her right arm.

Vaughn thought about that for a moment. Temporary cast.

They expected her to die. There was no need to waste material or time putting the hard, secure cast around her arm. They would surely have to take it off days, if not hours later.

And for the first time, Vaughn felt something. He didn't recognize it at first, for it was buried in layers and layers of pain and sorrow, but it was there nonetheless.

"Hope."

His eyes were wide and his heart fluttered. He hadn't realized it had been him that had whipsered the word, but he had heard it.

His mind was made. Sydney was going to be just fine. Just fine.

He moved his hand and put it gently on her hand, desperately wanting to feel her skin but settling for the soft bandage.

"Sydney." He was begging, but his voice was strong.

"Sydney, we're okay now - You're okay. I know...I know..." his voice broke, and he breathed in heavily, regretting it immeaditly when his nostrils filled with the steril hospital air.

"I know..." he stumbled again, not really knowing what he was trying to say. He inched a little closer and leaned his chin on her bed next to her neck.

They hadn't even bothered to put the safety guards around the bed. Vaughn noticed this, trying to brush it away but not before letting the thought quickly enter his mind. 'They really do expect her to die.'

He smiled to himself, though Vaughn made it disappeaed quickly, not sure where it had come from.

"We're going to prove them wrong, Syd," he whispered, hoping his warm breath would reach her. "We're going to be just fine." And with that, he let his head raise slightly, moving his hand away from hers, and slowly moving it north.

He let his hand hover above her cheek once again, taking a deep breath before letting it land gently.

He felt tears burn his eyes for the third time today.

She was there. Right there with him. He was touching her, feeling her, loving her. And she was there. She wasn't gone. She was there.

He moved his thumb slowly back and forth against her cheek, loving the feeling of his skin against hers.

He sighed softly, letting his body relax a little.

His whole body stilled, however, when he heard a sigh much like his escape from her.


	13. Chapter 13

After eliciting no reaction from her, Vaughn concluded he was imagining things. However, a few minutes later, Vaughn was sure he heard what could only be described as a moan.

He moved in a little closer, stoking her hair with the back of his hand.

"Syd...Baby...Can you hear me?"

Nothing.

"Syd? Sydney...I need you to open your eyes now. I need to see..."

He stopped mid-sentence when he saw her eyes fluttering behind the lids. She was obviously struggling to wake up.

He tried to mask the excitement in his voice, not wanting to overwhelm her. He continued stroking her hair as he spoke.

"That's it baby. Let me see those beautiful brown eyes."

His breath stiffened as her lashes began fluttering, and he moved over her, partially to block out the harsh flourscent lights and partially because he wanted her to see him first.

After another minute, her heavy eyes opened into thin, weary slits.

She let her eyes adjust for a moment, not letting them open any further, but allowing herself a small smile when she saw the large dimples and bright green eyes through the fog.

Vaughn felt as though an enormous weight had been liften off of his chest, finally allowing him to breath.

"Hi..." He swallowed hard, fighting back the rush of happy tears burning in his eyes. "Hi beautiful."

She opened her eyes a little more, finally allowing herself to take in her surroundings. With the awareness, though, came the pain.

She wasn't sure how she hadn't noticed it before, but it seemed to come at her full blast, lighting every inch of her body on fire.

She leaned her head back in pain, finding it only caused her more. She wanted to scream but realized she was wearing an oxygen mask. When she raised her left hand to lift it off, she felt Vaughn gently guide it back down.

"Syd..." His voice was coated with concern, immediately noticing how much pain she was in and swearing he could feel it himself. "Syd you need to keep that on." He looked her up and down, trying to find a way to calm her without causing her more pain. He setlled with putting a hand gently on her good shoulder and the other cupping her cheek.

"Syd, what hurts?" He was growing more frantic by the second, as he saw tears rush from the corners of her eyes and onto her tender, raw skin. He hastily brushed them away and continued.

"Is it your head?" She squeezed her eyes shut, causing a wave of tears to roll down the side of her face. "Okay, good...Good girl. Just blink once for yes, okay?...Okay..." He had removed one hand from her face and was persistantly slamming the call button. "Just another second Sydney," he said into her forehead, gently following his words with light kisses. "Just another second..."

It was actually another minute before the doctor came, but to Vaughn and Sydney, it felt like a month. Sydney was doing all she could to stay with Vaughn, but the pain was intensifying, making even the simple task of looking into Vaughn's green eyes a difficult one.

By the time the doctor came in, Sydney had unknowingly bit her bottom lip so hard, it was gushing blood. Vaughn, however, noticed right away and looked desperately to the doctor who had just rushed to Sydney's side.

"She's in a lot of pain," Vaughn said hurridly.

The doctor didn't seem to acknowledge Vaughn's presence, and leaned over Sydney. He pried open Sydney's squinted eyes and flashed a light into them. She flinched back at the light, the sudden movement causing her head even more pain. She unintentionally let out another moan. Without disturbing the doctor, Vaughn placed his hand back on her face, feeling another wave of relief wash over him when her eyes met his. He could see the pain in them - and that destroyed him - but he could also see something just a day ago he never thought he would see again - Sydney. Looking into her eyes was like looking into her soul. She only managed to hold the gaze for a few seconds before painfully squeezing them shut once more, but in those few seconds, Vaughn seemed to become even more convinced she would make it through this. Her pain-filled cry cry distressed him nonetheless, however, and his body quickly snapped back into action.

The doctor was now simply hovering over Sydney, shuffling through papers on his clipboard and occasionally glancing at her.

"Can't you do something?" Vaughn had attempted to mask the rush of emotions running through him, but failed miserably as his voice broke.

The doctor eyes Sydney carefully before looking back at Vaughn.

"Why don't we speak outside for a moment?"

Vaughn's face darkened as he looked back at Sydney, whose crimson blood was still running down mouth, creating a little puddle at the bottom of the mask while the rest pushed through and formed thin pathways down her chin and under her neck. Vaughn quickly grabbed a tissue from the bedside table, not moving his hand from her face, and gently wiped the small trail of blood from her face, more for his own good than for hers.

"Syd, I know it hurts, but you need to relax for a little. Okay? Please, Syd...Just breath..." He looked at the doctor again, who was watching the interactions between the two with obvious displeasure.

"I'll send a nurse in to clean her up and change her mask. I think it would be best if we spoke outside."

If possible, Vaughn felt Sydney's body tense at the doctors words. He brushed his thumb lazily across her cheek, carefully avoiding looking at her blood filled mask.

"I'm not leaving her..."

"Agent Vaughn..."

"I'm not leaving her!" His loud voice clearly startled Sydney, and he inwardly cursed himself for letting his emotions get the better of him, especially when she needed him most.

"Why can't you give her something for the pain?" His voice was low now, and he was suprised the doctor had heard him at all.

The doctor eyed both people before him once more before sighing defeatedly. He wasn't sure just how much Agent Bristow could understand in her current state, but he generally preferred to discuss dire issues away from the patient. Still, Agent Vaughn had made it clear he wouldn't have it any other way.

"We can."

Vaughn looked further into the doctor's eyes, confused and willing him to continue.

"As you've been told, Ms. Bristow has suffered extensive injuries..."

'You think?' Vaughn thought to himself, supressing snorting outwardly.

"Given her current condition, it is unlikely she will make it through the night."

Again, Vaughn cringed inwardly but somehow managed to keep a straight face, wanting to be strong for Sydney who he knew was listening intentively, though her body language would suggest nothing of the sort.

"We could up her morphine dosage, but because she has what looks like the early stages of pnuemonia, this would only worsen her condition. However, it would eliviate some of the pain."

Vaughn looked blanky at the doctor. He was stating Sydney's options as though he was reciting the side effects of an allergy medication - not deliviring horrific and depressing news to a dying woman and her lover.

How was Vaughn supposed to make a desicion like that? Let Sydney live out her last few hours of life in miserable pain, or ensure her place in the ground.

Vaughn knew what Sydney would want...She wouldn't want to die like this - moaning and crying, weak and helpless. She would want to die strong and proud, loved and completed.

But still, Vaughn refused to believe that she would actually die. How could he when she was right there with him, breathing and responding. Seeing her in pain was definitely the most horrific torture he had ever endured, but atleast she was feeling - atleast she was with him. He knew it was selfish, but he needed her. If she died, he knew he would go right along with her.

With this in mind, Vaughn responded passively to the doctors remark. "She has pnuemonia?" He asked, never taking his eyes off her.

"Yes. Actually, do you know if Ms. Bristow was ill before her...capture?"

Vaughn squirmed, realzing what the doctor was saying. "Yes." If only he had made her stay home...If only he had called for Weiss...If only he had convinced her to call in sick...None of the thoughts that flashed through his mind were new ones, but they seemed to have the same effect as the first time they crossed his mind - hurtling him into an unknown dimension filled only with guilt and pain.

"That could explain why the pnuemonia has developed so quickly."

Vaughn's mind flashed, and he quickly tore his eyes away from Sydney, looking up at the fluids being poured into her through the IV. His mother had had pnuemonia when he was 15, and he spent almost every night at the hospital with her, learning everything he could about her condition. His assumption confirmed, Vaughn looked up at the doctor accusingly.

"Why isn't she being treated for it?"

"I'm sorry?"

"Why isn't Sydney being treated for pnuemonia?"

"Agent Vaughn..." the doctor trailed off, pointing his finger at something behind Vaughn.

Suspiciously, Vaughn turned around and looked at what the doctor was pointing to. For the first time he realized where the loud beeping that surrounded the room was coming from...A heart monitor. But it wasn't monitoring one heart...It was monitoring two.

"Oh G-d..." Vaughn breathed. "She's pregnant."


	14. Chapter 14

Pregnant? How could she be pregnant? It didn't make sense, in every sense of the world. Even if Sydney had been pregnant, which Vaughn doubted anyway, there was no was a baby could possibly survive what Sydney had gone through.

He tore his eyes away from the heart moniter to look into Sydney's. When he found them blanketed under rivers of salty water, he reached up to stroke her cheek. With the tears clouding her eyes, he could hardly make out what she was feeling. Was it suprise? Fear? Guilt? The idea that he couldn't read her almost frightened him more than the situation itself...Almost.

He reluctantly turned his face in the dircetion of the doctor but kept his eyes glued on Sydney's.

"How...What's..." He struggled to find the right words, but he knew that when he looked at Sydney, no matter what the circumstance, he could never seem to focus. But this - This he had to figure out. He shifted his gaze to the doctor, plastering his game face back on.

"How far along?"

"We would estimate sometime around 9 weeks."

9 weeks? Vaughn's mind raced, and he looked to Sydney, who seemed to be just as frustrated with her inability to speak as he was. He wanted answers. Had she known about the pregnancy?

Somehow or another, they seemed to communicate using just their eyes. Sydney still had tears falling down her face, though it wasn't clear if they were caused by pain or the situation at hand. But as she looked pleadingly into Vaughn's eyes, he could tell she was just as lost as he was. She flicked her eyes from Vaughn to the doctor and then back, encouraging Vaughn to continue.

"Is the baby okay?"

The doctor looked at Vaughn with a blank expression, so Vaughn decided to go a different route.

"How is this...possible?" His voice was a bit more hushed now, as though he was trying to protect Sydney from hearing what was going on. "I mean with everything Sydney's been through, how could a baby have survived?"

The doctor eyed Sydney for a moment and then turned away from both, pursing his lips before looking back at Vaughn.

"I'm afraid I can't answer that for you."

Vaughn's eyebrows furrowed in anger and confusion. "What the..." But before he could finish, the doctor stepped sideways revealing a silhouette in the doorframe.

The person moved forward gracefully, turning to the doctor and letting him know it was alright to leave.

Vaughn felt his jaw drop slightly, but hardened all his features as the figure approached.

A malicious smile spead across her face.

His voice rich with accusation, frustration and confusion, Vaughn spoke, gripping Sydney's good wrist tightly as he did.

"Irina."


	15. Chapter 15

For a few seconds, the two stood staring at each other, thousands of emotions swelling behind each of their eyes.

Irina was the one to break the connection. Her hardened face melted as she looked at Sydney, who was staring at her mother through glossy eyes.

What could only be described as guilt and concern washed over Irina's face, but Vaughn either didn't notice, or didn't buy it.

He stepped in front of Sydney's bed, blocking her from Irina's view. Irina's face hardened once again as she looked up to met Vaughn's eyes.

"Get out."

Irina smiled develishly.

"Now Mr. Vaughn..."

"GET out." He cut her off, his tone eerily calm but his eyes menacingly cold.

Irina's smirk quicjly disappeared, replaced by a look of dissatisfaction.

"If you want Sydney to live," she inched forward, and Vaughn unconciously took a step backward, "you will hear me out."

Vaughn stared at her for a second, before breaking out into a dimpled smile. He breathed out a laugh, but when he spoke, his voice was dripping with anger.

"Are you kidding? According to Sark, you're the reason she's here to begin with."

Irina smiled. "Since when do you take the words of Julian Sark to be truth?"

"Since it's his word over yours."

Once again, the smirk was wiped off of Irina's face. She looked down at where she knew Sydney was hidden behind Vaughn. When she spoke again, her voice lacked the professional coldness it had contained moments ago.

"How long have they given her?"

Vaughn rolled his eyes and laughed again.

"What do you want, Irina?"

"I want to know how my daughter is."

Vaughn cringed. He usually hid it well, but she had caught him off guard. He never held it against Sydney, but being in love with the woman who's mother murdered your father is never quite as simple as one may think. Plus, he had no doubt that Irina knew how exactly Sydney was.

He spoke slowly and carefully, emphasizing each syllabel. "I think you need to leave right now."

"6 hours, Agent Vaughn? Or is it 5 now?"

Vaughn used every restraint and every ounce of power he had in him to keep from killing her right there, but he resisted for Sydney's sake. He wasn't looking at her, but he could feel the pain and deceit radiating from her cold body. He couldn't imagine what was going on in her mind right now, and in all honesty, he wasn't sure he wanted to.

Before he could respond, Irina spoke again.

"As I'm sure the doctors have informed you, there is nothing more than can do for Sydney." Vaughn's nostrils flared and his eyes dared Irina to continue. More difficult than hearing those words was the fact that Sydney was hearing them as well. He knew she had known she was dying, but no one had said anything to her, and this wasn't the way she should have found out.

"There is nothing in medicine that will help her. There is only Rambaldi."

Vaughn felt the anger bubbling inside him, burning him inside and out. He wanted to say something - anything - but the pain and anger was overwhelming, leaving him - for all intensive purposes - paralyzed.

When Irina looked back at Vaughn, her eyes were filled with greif even he couldn't deny.

Her voice was just above a whisper, filled with such desperation it didn't sound like Irina at all. "Just let me explain."

Vaughn's features remained hardened, but he stepped aside, leaving Sydney in plain view of Irina.

He knew better than to trust Irina - He knew better than trusting anyone. But this was different. He had felt it the moment she had entered the room. This was the hope he had felt earlier; the miracle he had been praying for. He didn't believe a word she was saying, but at this point, he was left with no other choice:

Let Irina continue and possibly help Sydney or sit and watch as the love of his slowly and painfully drifted away.

Irina nodded at him slightly, doing nothing to cover the tears that filled her eyes at the sight of her daughter.

Vaughn turned his attention back to Sydney, who held Irina's gaze for a second before painfully squeezing her eyes shut and allowing her head to roll back to the center.

Irina stepped forward cautiously, hesitating with each movement.

"Sydney..." She shook her head and looked away. "I never...this wasn't how it was supposed to happen."

Vaughn spoke, startling Irina whose focus remained on Sydney.

"How was it 'supposed to happen?'"

Irina nodded and looked down at the floor.

"I will explain." She pursed her lips and nodded again, before looking back up to Vaughn. "But I would like a few moments alone with my daughter first."

Vaughn's eyes grew wide. For Sydney's sake, he tried to keep his voice low, but his anger got a hold of him and his voice grew louder with rage. "You honestly think I'm going to leave you alone in a room with Sydney?"

Irina didn't respond, but turned back to look at Sydney, who was looking at Vaugh intently through pained eyes. Vaughn waited a moment, bt Irina didn't turn back so he let his gaze fall back on Sydney.

The look in her eyes terrified him. Yes, it was filled with all he expected - Pain both of the physical and mental, confusion, fear, betrayal, uncertainty - everything he hated for her to possess, but it was also filled with a determination that was unsettling because he knew what it meant.

He moved over to her, Irina forgotten, and kneeled down, placing his hand back on her good wrist.

"Syd, I am not leaving you alone with her."

Sydney opened her mouth, but grimaced at the movement and closed her eyes. He stroked her wrist with his thumb, willing her to look back at him.

"It's not safe." His voice was gentle and comforting, but firm and almost commanding.

She opened her eyes to look at him again, careful not to move her throbbing head. Sydney Bristow knew better than to trust her mother, but this was all she had. She wasn't ready to go, and she felt it happening inside of her. It wasn't like anything she had ever felt before...It almost wasn't a feeling. That's actually exactly what it was. It was this cold blanket of nothingness that she felt herself slowly being sucked into. There was no pain in the nothingness, but there was also no love, no green eyes, no Vaughn. And she needed Vaughn. She had just found him. She wasn't ready to let him go.

And she knew he wasn't ready to let her go. She knew if she died, he would spend years beating himself up and mourning her death. He would stop living. And she couldn't let him do that. She knew there was nothing she could say or do to prevent it aside from staying alive. And if that meant trusting Irina Derevko - well, that was better than nothing.

He shook his head in disbelief, tightening his grip on Sydney's wrist slightly.

"Sydney, we don't know why she's really here. I will not let her stay with you alone."

But he could see it in her eyes; he was not going to win this fight.

She wanted it. He was never able to neglect her anything. But this, this was a lot to ask. She was asking him to trust the woman who murdered his father with the person he depended on for survival.

But this wasn't about him. If she wanted if, if she thought it was worth it, he would give it to her. At this point, there wasn't much else to lose.

He wrinkled his forehead even more, willing the tears threathining to spring to his eyes to stay down. She longer to reach out and wipe his forehead smooth, but even blinking was a task at this point.

Somehow, for a breif moment, she managed a small smile; so smile no one else would have noticed it, but to Vaughn, bigger and more beautiful than anything he could have asked for.

He pursed his lips, enjoying the simple feeling of reveling in her deep brown orbs. He leaned in a kissed her gently on the forehead, then firmly, letting his lips linger for a few moments. He pulled away with obvious pain and effort and stood up to face Irina, who had watched the interaction.

He nodded once, then brushed past her and closed the door, leaving the two most significant and life-altering woman in his life alone together.


End file.
